Unknown Genetics
by Ami of Resplendence
Summary: Zana Hyden is just a normal 16-year old girl, going to high school and aspiring to be an engineer. A gorgeous young man takes her breath away and soon, she is whisked away into a world of genetic mutations, danger, and secrets. Rated M for some strong language and some sexual content.
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Itachi Uchiha, Akatsuki, or anything else to do with Naruto. Having said that, this plot, this story and all other characters not associated with Naruto are my own. Thank you and enjoy.**

Hello! My name is Zana! I'm sixteen years old and today will be my first day of eleventh grade. UGH. I swear, what school starts at 7:40 in the morning?! Seriously, what the hell. Since it was the first day, all of the juniors had to report to the school library to pick up their class schedules. Our school has a weird system for classes; we work on a semester system. The first semester is from august until December, and the next is from January to June. But, the difference is, the first semester we have four classes and the second semester are four different classes. But enough about my school system!

I just yawned as I made my way up the steps to the library entrance. I pulled back my long dark hair into a messy bun and rubbed my grey eyes to get the sleepies out. I'm glad I got here earlier than usual; otherwise this place would be crawling with the morons that call themselves students. I received my schedule from the librarian and walked away just as the torrential hordes of students rushed toward her. I was pretty short, so I managed to squeeze through the crowd and I found a quiet corner to take a hard look at the orange paper in my hand:

1. Art 3 101 Enry  
2. Peer Helpers P36 Herb  
3. CP US History 405 Korner  
4. AP Calculus AB 122 Messnir

Overall, well rounded; I thought my schedule would have consisted of harder classes. My friends tried to persuade me to take AP US History and AP Art History and AP English, but I want to be an engineer in the future. I have no idea how History, English and Art would help me achieve that. So I kept my focus on all of the math classes. Art would be pretty easy. Peer helpers was a completely new class and I had no idea what to expect.

The teachers weren't too bad; except Korner. I have heard so many horror stories about him. Every year he manages to get at least one student expelled and many more suspended. I think he's just jealous that we're young and he's not. Herb; I had her before for English but I don't know what the hell Peer Helpers could be about. Maybe the school is just trying to find smart kids to tutor the not-so-smart ones for free.

The warning bell rang, signaling the time to make our way to class. Fortunately, the art building wasn't too far from the library; it was the trip from Art to Helpers that I was worried about. As I was walking to class, my attention was diverted.

"Zana! Are you headed to art as well?!" I quickly turned around and saw Rachel waving and smiling.

Behind her trailed Kristy and Caroline. I smiled and waved in return and waited for them to catch up.

"Yea, I've got art three; I'm excited," I said with a big smile. "How were your summers?"

"Nothing new; sat around and got fat," Kristy pinched her stomach to show us the so-called fat.

"I started studying for the SATs and ACTs," Caroline said matter-of-factly. "We gotta take those this year if we want to get into great universities."

"What other classes do you have Zana?" Rachel asked curiously.

"Calculus, US History, and Peer helpers," I listed off the top of my head.

"When is calculus for you?" Caroline inquired as we entered the art room.

"Fourth," I said.

"Awww, I have it third! At least we have one class together!" Caroline smiled.

"Well, we all have lunch together too," Kristy said optimistically.

The four of us grabbed a table near the back. The final bell rang signaling the start of class. We had an hour and a half in this class. Our teacher, Ms. Enry, started taking roll. After she did, she passed out the syllabus and began reading through it. My mind tuned her out automatically. It wasn't on purpose! I have a hard time focusing on things I find unimportant. I can read the syllabus whenever I need to. When she finished, she gave us an assignment for the day; to draw the pile of rocks that were at the middle of our table.

"Ugh, really? Rocks? It couldn't be flowers?" Rachel groaned.

"Well, she never specified realistic or not," I said coyly.

I put my head down once I got myself a paper.

"Zana, you okay?" Caroline asked.

"I'm still in summer mode," I complained. "And it's too early in the morning."

"I agree," Caroline said thoughtfully then changed the subject. "Are you guys going to Homecoming?"

"Uhm, we got two months till then Caroline," Kristy replied uncertainly.

"It's still fun to think about thought," Caroline insisted.

I put my head down again and rolled my eyes at her statement. To be honest, Caroline and I had a weird relationship. Last year, in my pre-calculus class, I had a crush on a guy named Jeromy. He was so sweet to me and so nice to me and we worked on classwork together. Out of the blue, Caroline asked him to the Sadie Hawkins' dance, even after I told her how I felt about him. Worst part is, he said yes, and then they went out for months. By then, the damage was done. Since then, I always was polite to her, but I didn't really consider her a friend.

I took out my ear buds and plugged in. Before I knew it, my drawing was done and it was time to go to our next class. I said a quick goodbye to them and powerwalked to my next class, in portable 36. It was clear across campus and I entered the room just as the final bell rang. I knew Mrs. Herb from ninth grade so I figured if I talked to her about my situation, she would understand where I was coming from.

"Zana! It's good to see you again," Mrs. Herb stated when she saw me. "It's been awhile."

"Yes it has," I smiled and pulled out my schedule. "I actually wanted to speak with you. See, my first period is at the front of school and I have to come all the way here after. Would I be marked down if I was, let's say, 30 seconds late?"

"Well no, but I can't give you more than a minute leeway," she shook her head apologetically. "I'm sorry."

"One minute is more than enough, thank you so much," I said gratefully and turned to take a seat.

Fortunately for me, people were still goofing off. That and I knew some people in this class.

"Zana! Here!" I saw one of my close friends, Emily, call out from the corner.

I couldn't help but smile. With her were Ben and Justin and a couple other guys who I've seen in some of my classes. The tall one was Stefan and the short one was Adam. They were nice guys but I kept my distance; they fooled around with the wrong crowd.

"What's up Emily," I smiled and sat in the chair next to her.

"Paco; this year, I'm going to change my name to Paco," Emily said seriously.

"Uhm, are you sure about that?" Justin asked tentatively.

"Yea, so you all better call me Paco!" Emily/Paco insisted.

Even when Mrs. Herb took roll, Emily told her to change her name to Paco. I shrugged internally; whatever floats her boat. I just leaned back in my chair and listened to Mrs. Herb talk about what the class was about.

After I had a general idea, my mind just wandered off into the abyss of dreamland. This class is basically opening the eyes of everyone and not to judge people based on appearance. For the next few weeks we would be telling life stories and then begin going to classes and spreading the message. I pulled out one of my favorite manga of all time, Legal Drug, and began reading from volume one.

"Hey, I've read that one before; not many people know about it," the guy sitting behind me said quietly enough so I could hear him.

I turned around and saw Stefan sitting behind me. He had wild dirty blond hair and was fairly tall for his age. I remember him being in my English class in ninth grade. What were the odds of him being in my class now? I was about to say something but someone took my book out of my hands before I could even begin reading.

"Zana, come on, don't ignore us," I heard Ben's voice.

I guess Mrs. Herb was giving us time to socialize.

"Long time no see Ben, how was your summer?" I asked politely. "May I have my book back please?"

"As long as you don't read it," he teased me.

"Fiiiiiine," I rolled my eyes and stowed my book back into my backpack.

For the rest of the class, Paco, Ben, and I talked to each other; our events over summer, our plans over the school year and what we plan to do with our futures. We also talked about what the class would entail. A few minutes before the bell rang, I felt a pair of hands on my shoulders and start giving me a shoulder massage.

"Wow Zana, you have a lot of knots in your shoulders," Justin said worriedly. "Just sit back and let me work my magic."

So I relaxed and Justin really did work magic. In the five minutes left for class, I felt so much better.

"Justin, I swear you should just be a massage therapist," I said gathering up my stuff.

"I should," he mused, then looked down at me. "Zana, when did you get so short?"

"What? I've always been this tall; you got taller," I said looking up at him.

He just smiled and patted my head, "Well, you just stay short and cute."

"Wha?!—" I started to say but the bell interrupted my incoming thought.

"Come on, class time! You're with us," Ben grabbed my arm and started pulling me along.

"See you later Zana!" Emily/Paco said, waving good-bye.

Ben, Justin and I walked together to our US history class; apparently we had this class together.

"So, what's the scoop on Korner?" Justin asked curiously.

"Well, he gets at least one student expelled each year and multiple students suspended," I rattled off what I had heard from Jeromy last year. "We should be scared."

"Psh, no teacher scares me," Ben boasted.

"Ben, be careful," I warned him.

The three of us entered the classroom and immediately fell silent; the atmosphere in the room was quite somber actually. I glanced to the corner and saw Korner sitting at his desk, patiently waiting for the bell to ring. We made our way to the corner opposite the door and sat at the table. Ben sat next to me and Justin sat across from Ben.

"See, it's not so bad," Ben whispered quietly, although I had to strain my ears to hear him.

"Oh my god, look at him," a couple girls at the table next to ours started whispering. "He's fucking gorgeous! Is he new here? I've never seen him before."

"Shiiiiit he's hella hot," another girl whispered.

I followed their gaze and it landed on the door, where there was a male, standing and looking around the classroom. He looked like he walked into the wrong classroom by mistake, but I could just be seeing things. I have to agree with the girls a table over, he is handsome. Dark eyes, pale skin, average height of maybe 5'8, and built. He was wearing jeans and a plain black, fitted t-shirt which accentuated his toned arms and torso. His hair was as dark as night, pulled back into a loose ponytail, and his eyes seemed like endless tunnels to which there lay no end.

"Wow…" I breathed out. "Fuck. He is hot."

"Since when do you curse Zana?" Ben shot me a look."

"Since the god of all things sexy walked into this room," I stifled a giggle.

I could feel Ben and Justin roll their eyes and I couldn't take my eyes off this beautiful creature that had walked into my third period history class. Even if Korner was going to be a hellish teacher, at least this eye candy would make everything much more bearable. He took a seat at the table nearest to the door, but he was in my direct line of sight; I had an uninterrupted view of his beautiful face. At least, I did until _they_ showed up.

A gaggling group of three of the preppiest, most hipster girls you would ever see. They all looked almost the same, and I knew I wasn't going to be getting along with these girls, although I would have to. See, my problem is that I'm too nice for my own good. So even if I don't like someone (i.e. Caroline) I still am nice to them because I can't tell them off. I would feel so bad and then the stress would build up on my soul until I apologized. It really sucks.

The bell rang and everyone instantly fell silent. Korner sat for a few more moments and then slowly stood up.

"Welcome to US History, where you will learn not to repeat past mistakes," he said sternly. "Let's begin with roll call."

He started calling out names, and one by one, everyone answered, "Here!" at least, until my name came along.

"Zana Hyden?" he looked up from his clipboard and his gaze swept the room.

"Present!" I called out, a little too excited.

He stared at me until I lowered my gaze to my desk, and then moved on. The names went on and on, until another person replied with the same remark I had.

My gaze shot up from my desk and I saw Mr. Gorgeous with his hand raised, although, Korner's gaze did not faze him a single bit. In fact, Mr. Gorgeous seemed like he was making Korner squirm and boy was he squirming. It was a stare-off between teacher and student. My eyes never left Mr. Gorgeous and I could have sworn I saw his eyes flash red, but it was gone as soon as it came. Korner put away and clipboard and began passing out textbooks. He explained we would do a chapter a week and every Friday there would a test. Each section should be read, and summarized and turned in by the end of the week. With that, he left us to do our thing.

"That's it? We sit here and read and take notes?" I hissed, somewhat angry that he wouldn't be doing any talking.

"And there will be absolutely no talking Ms. Hyden!" he barked out.

I winced and went back to my book. I grumbled internally; I hadn't even been paying attention to Mr. Gorgeous's name. Nor had I been paying attention to annoying girl group who had decided to sit next to Mr. Gorgeous for the rest of the semester. I snuck a glance at Mr. Gorgeous, damn this name is going to stick, and immediately my stare was met by the gaze of one girl who was sharing a table with him. If looks could do damage, I'd probably be dead right now.

Great, now even my eye candy is gone. What the hell. I decided to just focus on my work and block out everyone and everything else. It happened, but in the back of my mind, I felt a pair of eyes on me. Maybe it was the bitch again, maybe it was Korner, but I was too scared to even look up. I sighed and mentally slapped myself; since when had I become that much of a chicken? So I chanced a look up. Korner's gaze was on his computer screen and the bitch was trying to get the attention of Mr. Gorgeous, who looked as if he didn't have a care in the world. He was just trying to complete his work. Satisfied that I was going insane, I went back to my work, but the moment I looked down, the feeling came back. Trying my best to ignore it, I began mouthing what I was reading.

'As the revolution came to a close, we begin to see…' but it didn't help at all. My head shot up and I finally found out who had been staring at me all along: Mr. Gorgeous. I couldn't believe it. But he was still staring. I stared into those endless tunnels and felt myself getting lost; there were absolutely no emotions. What had happened in this guy's life to where his eyes show no emotion at all? A blush began to creep to my face and I quickly broke eye contact out of embarrassment. I tried to focus on my work but ended up doodling instead until the bell signaled lunch.

Ben, Justin and I were the last people out, since we did get the seats furthest from the door. Once we were outside, Justin spoke.

"Dang Zana, I'm pretty sure Korner hates you now," he shook his head. "First day and you're already on his radar."

"The guy has insanely good hearing, how the hell was I supposed to know he could hear whispers in the back of the room?" I almost hissed, and continued looking for Mr. Gorgeous.

I don't know why I was looking for him, maybe I developed a crush. Maybe a part of me hoped that the stare we had shared was a start of something special, but that was my romantic side talking.

"So, did you guys catch the name of the other guy who said 'present'?" I asked innocently as we made our way to our normal lunch spot.

The building where we had our history class was just one courtyard over from our normal lunch spot.

"I think is name is Itachi, Korner completely butchered the last name," Justin said quickly.

"And the girl across from him is Carrie Ream," Ben said darkly. "She's one you don't want to mess with."

"Ugh, who the hell mentioned Carrie?! Don't say her name; she's number one bitch at this school!" I heard my best friend Shelby call out.

"Yea! Stupid dimwit thinks I'm a cutter," my other best friend Serena rolled her eyes.

"Zana, why do you mention her?" my final bestie, Maggie, asked me.

"She's in our history class and kept shooting dagger looks at me," I said frowning. "I have no idea what I did to her in the first place. I didn't know she existed until today!"

"You're lucky then," Maggie shook her head and took out her lunch.

I dug through my backpack to pull out the lunch my mom had made for me: PBJ complete with carrot packet, an apple and a bottle of water.

"God, my mom is going health nut on me," I groaned. "I miss my Skittles."

Kristy, Caroline and Rachel showed up minutes later along with Joann, Joey, and Randy. Even though we had a huge circle of friends, we had our little groups. Shelby, Maggie, Serena and I sat on the bench and chattered about our first day of school.

Little did I notice, but Itachi had taken refuge on the bench beside ours. And he was followed by Carrie and her clique.

"So Itachi, we should totally hang out sometime!" Carrie said and then glanced at me. "I could totally show you a good time."

With that, she left, leaving Itachi, AKA Mr. Gorgeous, to brood over her offer.

I pulled out my manga Legal Drug again and started reading volume one. I've read it so many times before, but I can't help to read it again. My friends faded into the background and it became me and the book. I felt stares again and looked up abruptly. Anthony was walking by with his friends, staring at me while doing so.

"What's his issue?" Shelby gave him the evil eye and he disappeared down the hall.

"I used to have a small crush on him last year," I sighed. "I guess he found out. Ah well. No more feelings from me though. He lost his chance."

I went back to my novel, praying for no more interruptions. But another one came again, this time, it was someone standing over me, blocking the sunlight.

"Now what?" I said irritably and looked up, only to find Mr. Gorgeous standing over me, looking down.

"Can I see your book?" he asked his voice like ice.

"Uhm, sure," I said uncertainly and handed him my novel.

He flipped to the back and read the summary, all the while I just stared like an idiot. Why is he here and talking to me? Does he like manga too? Is he going to be weirded out? What the hell is he thinking?

"It sounds pretty cool, do you mind if I borrow it?" he asked me, not giving it back to me.

"Uh, sure I guess," I said, still in shock that he was talking to me.

"Thanks," he murmured, grabbed his stuff and walked off without another word or glance.

I regained composure moments later.

"What the fuck did I do that for?! I hardly know the guy and I gave him my beloved baby novel oh my god what if he steals it?!" I nearly cried and my friends looked at me. "What if he spills something on it? Or worse...FOOD! NOO!

"Uhm, I think its official, she's insane," Maggie commented but stifled a laugh as she watched me go bat-shit insane over a book.

"Zana's got a crush, Zana's got a crush," Serena sang out.

"Shut up serena!" I nearly yelled but blushed; she was right.

"Well, he's cute, and he talked to you, what do you think Zana?" Shelby asked me thoughtfully.

"I have no idea, I can't think around him, he's too good looking," I muttered and looked away.

I grabbed my backpack just as the bell rang. I bade farewell and made my way to calculus class. I just hope he gives me my book back. I would hate to have to buy another one.

I thought about the first day so far; I made an enemy, I have a new crush, and I'm going insane. Wonderful! Life is perfect.

"Welcome to calculus class! Please find your name on the desk and take a seat," Ms. Messnir said cheerfully.

And instantly I felt better. The desks in her room were arranged in groups of four so I took my seat and snuck a glance at the names around me. I nearly froze when I saw Itachi's name. His last name was Uchiha. Weird last name, but then again, aren't all last names?

"Well, well, we meet again," I heard his familiar icy voice laced with amusement.

I just kept my gaze on my desk, "Hello."

He took his seat and pulled out my book and began reading. The bell rang and Messnir began talking. She said that this would be a hard class, yadda yadda. She passed out review packets; basically first week was math review of the entire subject of math we had ever learned before this class. It was a pretty thick packet, due Friday as well.

Math was my strength, so I started on the packet. I enjoyed completing the problems, and before I knew it the bell rang. I even forgot the fact that the Mr. Gorgeous was sitting next to me the whole time. I packed up my back and booked it out of class. I was down the hall power-walking to my car when a voice stopped me.

"Zana!"

My heart instantly skipped a beat because I recognized Itachi's voice. Damn. I think I'm in love.

"Your book," he said quietly and handed it back to me. "Are there other volumes?"

"Yea, I can bring them tomorrow if you want," I said, accepting the book back; at least I can think now.

"That would be awesome, thanks," he said quietly and walked away, leaving me with my book.

I didn't have time to think after that; I was running behind schedule. I volunteered at a hospital every Monday after school and I didn't want to be late.

That night at home, I lay in bed trying to fall asleep, but Itachi's image just kept running through my head: his skin, his hair, but especially his eyes. His eyes spoke everything. He's seen things no one should see in their lifetime. He's a closed off person; even his voice shows little to no emotion what so ever. Either way, I looked forward to seeing him tomorrow…and the rest of my friends of course!

**A/N: Sorry this chapter was a lot of her thoughts, but I think it got the point across! I honestly didn't think the first chapter would be so long. Please review and let me know what you think! Thank you **


	2. Chapter 2

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Itachi Uchiha, Akatsuki, or anything else to do with Naruto. Having said that, this plot, this story and all other characters not associated with Naruto are my own. Thank you and enjoy.**

I woke up the next morning feeling as tired as I had felt when I went to sleep. I took a look in the bathroom mirror and saw the dark circles starting to make an appearance under my light grey eyes. I went back to my room and quickly got dressed.

"Aari! Let's get going! We're going to be late if you don't hurry!" I yelled from downstairs in the kitchen.

Aari is my little brother who is way too smart for his age. He's twelve but he's in eighth grade already but he's taking geometry at my high school in the morning. His middle school starts at 9 am so he comes to my school with me at 7:30, then after the first period geometry, he goes back to middle school. Pretty intense right?

I had my lunch packed and was really looking forward to today; probably because I get to see the sexiest man I have ever seen in my life.

When we did reach school, I went straight to the 700 wing, where my friends and I met before school. My friends and I were talking and having fun when Carrie and her groupies walked by, throwing me evil looks. Thank god Aari didn't notice, but Maggie did.

"What's their problem?" Maggie asked me curiously.

"That's Carrie! I seriously have not said a single word to her and she hates me," I said heatedly. "Seriously, what the fuck; what does she have against me?"

"Let's see: you're smart, you're pretty, and you're a great dancer," Maggie listed off.

"No, I'm not," I rolled my eyes at her statement.

"Don't deny it," Serena said.

I sighed and put my head in my hands. I was so tired! Curse the heat and my mind!

"Uhm, Zana…" Maggie poked my shoulder.

"Huh? What?" I looked up confused and saw Itachi standing over me.

"Oh right books!" I replied, momentarily discombobulated.

I hunted through my bag until I found what I was looking for. I stood up and handed them to him.

"Thanks so much," he replied softly, and took them from me. "I'll have them back to you by the end of the day."

Was it just me, or was his tone not as icy as before? He just nodded and left through the double doors.

"Oh my god, how the hell do you know him?" "He's so hot" everyone was surrounding me.

"Sheesh guys calm down, he just asked for books," I rolled my eyes.

I stood up and stretched when the bell rang. I walked to class with Rachel and Kristy. Caroline was already there. The day was relatively uneventful, unless you count staring at Itachi third period, getting stared at by Carrie, and being picked on by Korner.

The week was the same. Korner stopped picking on me that week and Itachi hadn't spoken to me all week, but I did catch him staring at me once in a while. I don't know why he didn't take up Carrie's offer from before; I mean, it's not as if she's ugly or anything…

The following week, we were already making headway into the curriculum. In art, we were working on an art series. I was half done with my painting but I didn't want to leave it behind in class. So I opted to carry it with me for the whole day. Since it was oil paint, it stayed pretty moist. Today, I was in my sports clothes: basketball shorts, running shoes, and my most recent Taekwondo tournament shirt.

The painting wasn't too big, the size of a normal sheet of paper, so it was pretty easy to carry around with me.

Third period is where things started to get ugly, but the saying goes: everything happens for a reason. When I arrived to class, Carrie and her little group of friends were already there, but so was Itachi. I guess my shoelace was undone because I tripped over it and my painting went flying out of my hands right onto Carrie.

I have never seen anyone get so angry about a little paint; okay maybe it was a lot of paint.

"What the fuck Zana?!" she yelled.

"I'm sorry! I just tripped, I am so sorry," I apologized, picking up my painting and slowly backing away.

"Does this wash off at least?" she asked angrily.

"Its oil paint, so no, it doesn't," I shook my head, but deep down, I was pleased that her clothes and hair were ruined.

"Oh, you are so gonna get it!" Carrie balled her hands up in fists.

She was begging for a fight. I looked around to see if Korner was here, but he wasn't anywhere to be seen. A teacher would be nice right now.

"He's not here, so whatcha gonna go? Back off and be the wussy you are?" Carrie sneered at me.

I felt something snap inside me. A clawing feeling in my gut was itching to be let free; practically begging.

Before I could stop myself I spoke, "Bring it."

"You're gonna get it!" she screeched and lunged for me.

My Taekwondo training kicked in and I just stepped out of the way of her oncoming attack.

"You missed," I smiled and taunted her.

I took my backpack off and threw it to the side. I took a defensive stance and waited for her second attack. She charged me again, hands extended. Normally, I would never get involved in anything like this, but it felt good to taunt her and see her frustration and failure. I took way too much joy in it, and part of me was horrified of that.

My mind went back to Carrie; she did not know how to fight one bit. I heard rumors that she got into a few fights and won, but I think those rumors were false, like all rumors. I didn't even have to use my hands; I just dodged everything she threw at me. No one tried to step and stop the fight either. Everyone was looking on in awe. Once she had backed herself up to the wall, I decided to throw a punch, but I stopped mere millimeters from her face. Her face held a look of pure fear that send adrenaline rushing through my blood.

"What's wrong? Too scared?" I breathed out so only she could hear me.

She whimpered slightly, but Korner decides to come back at that moment.

"ZANA HYDEN!" his voice grabbed my attention.

Everything went in slow motion; he yelled my name and Carrie rammed her nose into my hand. I pulled away before she could get any blood on my hand.

"PRINCIPAL'S OFFICE NOW!" he yelled, his face beet red.

"Why would I do that?" I said coolly; wait why did I say that?!

His face turned even redder, and I felt satisfaction that should not be there.

This was not me; the real me would have been frozen in fear at this point. But I was innocent; I did not harm Carrie Ream. In fact, she did that to herself! But I had set it up, so in that case, I was just as guilty.

"You punched Carrie Ream in the face! What do you have to say for yourself?!" he yelled, his face splotchy red.

"Self-defense?" I said, raising my eyebrows. "She started throwing punches at me. And I didn't even punch her! She was whimpering like a little pig at the slaughterhouse. She rammed her face into my hand!"

I looked at Carrie who was surrounded by her two friends; she looked absolutely 'terrified' but I could see it in her eyes, I fell straight into her trap.

"God, this is such a load of bullshit," I muttered and left the room.

"You get back here delinquent!" Korner yelled and tried to stop me from leaving.

I took a look around the room: everyone was gawking except for Itachi. His face held a very visible smirk, as if he was telling me to piss him off even more. So I made my choice: I ran.

"I won't be punished for defending myself!" I yelled as I ran off.

I ran toward the gate near the back of school but unfortunately for me, it was locked. A couple hall monitors were standing guard at the gate, but I didn't slow down. I listened to my gut and kept up full speed. I jumped.

That was when something amazing happened; I jumped over the ten foot high fence and the hall monitors. I landed nimbly on my feet on the other side and kept the same running pace, as if I had been doing it my entire life. I was running faster than I have ever run before in my life. I stopped when I reached my car and I was about to speed off, but I realized that I forgot my car keys in my backpack. Wow, I'm such an idiot! In the distance I heard police sirens.

"Well that was fast," I said to no one in particular.

"Yes that was," I heard an unknown voice behind me.

"Well shit," I turned to see a Taser pointed at me.

I raised my hands in surrender and the officer actually handcuffed me! What?!

"Come on, let's go," he murmured.

He dragged me to the principal's office with my hands behind my back. Carrie was already there when we arrived and the nurse was attending to her nose. We were in the principal's office and Officer Young sat me down across from Carrie.

"Alright ladies, what happened?" the principal, Mr. Brad spoke.

Officer Young stood at the door, a security guard to make sure nothing happened. The two of us stayed silent. Maybe they'll let it drop.

"We've already called your parents, and if you two don't stop talking, you might be looking at expulsion," Mr. Brad threatened.

My head snapped up, "I'm valedictorian! You can't expel me!"

"I'm waiting for my parents," Carrie sniffled and took a glance at me.

"I'm with her," I replied, no emotion present in my voice. "You wouldn't even believe me if I told you. Korner didn't."

All of us fell silent and waited. I felt something wiggling inside me, begging to be let loose.

'No! You got me in trouble in the first place instinct!' I screamed internally.

'How cute, you think I'm your instinct,' I heard a deep gravelly voice from inside.

'Great, now there are voices in my head,' I slapped myself mentally.

"Zana! What on earth is this?!" my parents came into the office and looked from me to Carrie to Mr. Brad.

"Please have a seat Mr. and Mrs. Hyden," Mr. Brad said apologetically. "Then we can get to the bottom of this."

Carrie's parents arrived a couple minutes later.

"Oh my baby! What happened?!" her mom ran up to her and pulled her into a hug.

"Mom, I'm alright," she murmured but shot me a smug look over her mom's shoulder.

'Smug little bitch, you should have taught her lesson,' the voice in my head came out.

'Just ignore it,' I breathed in and out.

"Alright, let's get on with it," Mr. Brad said. "Carrie, what happened?"

"Well, it wasn't my fault," she said as she shed crocodile tears. "She walked into class, tripped over her own shoes and her painting flew all over me."

"And then what happened?" Mr. Brad pressed.

Carrie threw me a fearful look.

"Oh come on, I'm the one in handcuffs and I didn't do shit," I rolled my eyes.

Carrie continued her version of the story, "Her painted flew all over me and got ruined."

She paused for a moment; I guess she was too scared to continue.

"At this rate, I see no reason she would hit you; I would probably believe her over you anyways due to her record," Mr. Brad said shortly.

Instantly I felt better, but I could still sense some doubt.

"I'm not done yet," Carrie insisted. "She got mad that I messed up her painting."

"Are you kidding?! Seriously I can just paint over that; you really couldn't come up with something more believable?" I laughed.

"How dare you talk to my daughter that way!" her mom screeched in my face. "You shut your mouth right now!"

I leaned close to her ear and whispered in a deadly voice, "Make me."

I pulled away and smiled as creepily as I could; I had been practicing. She was thoroughly spooked.

Officer Young placed a hand on my shoulder indicating I should back off.

"Oh thanks so much; she's the one screaming like banshee and I'm restrained," I retorted. "Or is this because I'm brown and she's white?"

"Zana!" my mom admonished me.

"She started punching me and I managed to dodge all of them except for one and now we're here," she finished her story lamely.

I could tell Mr. Brad wasn't buying it, but he didn't want a lawsuit so he would have to pursue every avenue.

"Zana? What do you have to say about this?" Mr. Brad turned to me.

"I walked into class, tripped over my shoelace, my painting flew onto her. She got mad that the paint wouldn't wash off so she threatened me. She started charging me but I evaded her attacks. She backed up into a wall so I thought I would scare her. I threw a punch but it landed inches away from her face," I recited animatedly. "Mr. Korner walked in, and she smashed her face against my hand, bloodying her own nose."

"That's a bunch of crap; why would Carrie intentionally hurt herself?" her mom said, pointing at me.

"I'm not Carrie, how the hell should I know?" I said icily. "Look, my hand has no blood on it, and neither do my clothes."

"Well you're really good then!" her mom said angrily.

I rolled my eyes; what a bimbo, "Ask the class; they saw the whole thing."

"We'll do that right now," Mr. Brad stood up. "I'm going to ask the parents to stay here while I take Carrie and Zana with me. Mr. Young, please make sure the parents are in separate rooms. I don't want any trouble."

Mr. Brad led us back to class. We were silent the entire time.

"Wait here," he said firmly and he went inside the classroom. A couple minutes later, he came back out with one person: Itachi.

"Okay, what is your name young man?" Mr. Brad asked him.

"Uchiha, Itachi," he said quietly then looked me up and down. "Why is Zana in handcuffs? She didn't do anything."

"That's why I called you out here; I wanted to ask you what happened," Mr. Brad said quickly.

"Well, Carrie started the fight; Zana just stumbled and fell," Itachi shrugged. "Carrie overreacted."

"Thank you Itachi, you can go back inside, please send Ariel out," Mr. Brad replied.

Itachi glanced at both of us and went back inside. Ariel came out moments later.

"Alright Ariel, tell me what you saw," Mr. Brad pressed her.

Ariel went off, "Well, Carrie was pissed because she had paint all over her and Carrie started throwing punches but she couldn't even land one because Zana kept dodging and then Carrie was backed up to the wall and Zana threw a punch but it didn't hit. Everybody was staring for seconds and then Mr. Korner walked in and then she started spurting blood."

"How did she start spurting blood?" Mr. Brad asked quickly.

"I don't know, everyone was staring at Mr. Korner when he walked in, but I know when he walked in, her nose was intact," Ariel said matter-of-factly.

"Thank you for your help Ariel, you may go now," Mr. Brad stated.

After we got back to his office, he spoke heavily, "Both of you will be suspended for three days. I hate doing this to my number one student."

"I didn't even touch her! She did that to herself! Why am I being punished for something I didn't do?!" I nearly yelled.

"There is nothing I can do," Mr. Brad sighed, and motioned for Officer Young to let our parents back into his office.

"Unfortunately, Carrie and Zana will both be suspended for three days," Mr. Brad reiterated. "Please have a seat outside while I speak to your parents."

Carrie and I sat far away from each other outside the principal's office. She kept throwing me dirty looks.

"Oh come on Ream, don't be such an ass," I rolled my eyes at her and looked away.

Three days…I'm going to miss so much school. At least I have the three days to catch up.

"You're trying to take Itachi away from me!" she said, a wild look in her eyes.

"Take Itachi from you? We've spoken like ten words total to each other," I said dryly. "He doesn't give two shits about you, or any other girl for that matter!"

"Don't play dumb with me! I saw you giving him your stupid little comic books," she spat viciously.

"They're graphic novels, get it right," I growled. "He asked to read them so I let him. Sheesh."

She shut up. I leaned back into my chair and closed my eyes.

"Zana? What are you doing here? What happened?" I opened my eyes and saw Ben, Justin, and Maggie standing there.

"I'm being suspended for three days," I replied dully.

"What?! What did Miss 4.0 GPA, Straight A student, do to get herself suspended?" Maggie asked frowning.

At that moment, my parents and Carrie's parents came out of the principal's office. My parent's faces held solemn expressions.

"Guys, we should go," Justin said quietly.

Carrie's parents took her home and my parents came toward me.

"Zana, go get your stuff and we'll see you at home," my dad said sternly. "We need to talk."

I nodded once. I turned around and went back to the classroom. One of the counselors, Mr. Wilson, escorted me back to class.

"Mr. Wilson, is it alright if I can drop off my painting in the art wing?" I asked tentatively.

"Sure, may I ask what actually happened?" Mr. Wilson replied.

"I defended myself and I'm being suspended for it," I said stoutly, while picking up my things from the floor in Korner's room.

Mr. Wilson escorted me to my art classroom where I dropped off my painting and then he escorted me to my car. We were silent this whole time, and the voice in my head was silent as well.

"Go straight home," he ordered.

"No, I'm going to the club, and I'm going to get drunk," I replied sarcastically.

"Don't take that tone with me," he said sternly.

I gave him a lopsided smile, "Yes sir."

I climbed into my car and floored it. I took the long way home, blasting my music on the way. I really didn't care one way or another. I knew I was innocent, so my conscious was clear. Tech N9ne was blasting out of my speakers; people stared but I didn't care. I smiled evilly and decided to change my look. I was too normal. I know I'm not.

I got home and immediately went upstairs to drop off my stuff.

"Zana, can you please come downstairs?" my mom called from the kitchen.

I sighed and made my way downstairs. I saw my dad sitting at the dining table with my mom. He ushered for me to sit. I won't bore you with their lecture, but they basically said they believe me and to stay out of trouble. But then they went off on tangents about how everyone in the world is out to get me, and that this would blemish my school record and I won't be able to get into a top-tier university. I just went on autopilot, nodding at the appropriate times.

I hid out in my room after. I emailed my teachers about my situation and asked for the homework. Once the email was sent, I grabbed my purse, my keys and my money. I needed to clear my head, and Barnes and Noble helped me do that. It was my safe haven.

I hid in one of their corner couches and read Mary Higgins Clark novels. I ended up buying some books too. I struggled to get out the door. I was halfway to my car when I heard it.

"Need help?"

I nearly fell over. I looked over and saw Itachi standing nearby, just watching me struggle. He was wearing his school clothes; even had his messenger bag.

"Aren't you supposed to be at school?" I shot at him.

Wow, I can talk to him now; sweet. Now I won't look like an idiot.

'You're welcome,' my new voice said slyly.

Aw shit…

"School's out," he shrugged and walked toward me, grabbing half a stack of books out of my hands.

I checked my watch and saw the time: 5:30pm.

"Aw shit, I gotta get home," I shook my head. "I'm sorry; I used to never curse. I don't know where it came from."

He just nodded once and started off toward my car. Once everything was packed away, I turned to him. "Thank you," I said, trying to keep my voice even.

"You know, there are rumors you and Carrie started fighting over me," he stated flatly.

"You were there and you know that's not true," I said hotly. "Maybe it was to her, but definitely not for me. Thank you for your help but I really need to get going."

He nodded once, turned around and walked off. When I got home, my mom shrieked when she all the books I bought.

"But they were all on sale," I whined. "I promise I'll read them all."

I dragged the bags to my room and shoved them in the corner. I was about to snuggle into bed when Aari jumped into my room.

"Dude, what happened?" he sat on my bed and asked quickly.

"I got into a fight and got suspended," I replied dully, tired of telling the story.

"What's the story?"

"I tripped; my painting fell onto a girl. She overreacted. I acted in self-defense."

"Oh…hey can you help me on my math homework?" he asked hopefully.

"Sure, gimme a sec I'll meet you," I nodded and yawned.

I realized it was Wednesday; today counted as one day of suspension. I would be missing thrusday, and Friday, and then came the weekend. Oh hell yes!

**A/N: Damn, two chapters in one day. I have never spent so much typing I my life! So, this fanfic is actually complete! I wrote it at least six years ago, and it spans two 70 sheet, college ruled notebooks. So I figured since I'm done with school, let's type it up and post it and see what people think! I great appreciate constructive criticism. I know its chapter two, but SO MUCH WILL HAPPEN I AM SO EXCITED! Anyways, thanks for reading and please review! Thank you!**


	3. Chapter 3

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Itachi Uchiha, Akatsuki, or anything else to do with Naruto. Having said that, this plot, this story and all other characters not associated with Naruto are my own. Thank you and enjoy.**

It got boring at home pretty quickly. I was actually excited to do my homework! I finished it all before the weekend, which wasn't as hard as you think. I lounged about all day on Saturday; just on the computer reading up fan fictions and posting in forums all day. I am excited for Monday though; I haven't really seen my friends in a while. We spoke on the phone a few times and they aren't much for texting; neither am I.

Sunday rolled around and I lazed about in my room, going insane with nothing to do. I heard a loud thump from downstairs, and I feared the worst.

"Mom?" I called out.

"Zana! Aari! Down, now!" my dad nearly yelled.

This did not bode well, especially since dad sounded very tense. We ran downstairs and full speed.

"I thought we didn't get mail on Sunday," I said perplexed.

"We forgot to check yesterday," my dad said darkly.

"We're being sued," my mom replied.

"Why?!" Aari and I yelled shocked.

"Your little friend is suing us because you punched her in the nose; she's claiming severe mental distress," my dad was livid.

"I didn't do anything!" I said desperately.

This was not good; why couldn't she just let this go? It was a stupid fight to begin with, and she just overreacted to some paint! I would have gladly replaced her clothes!

"We have to go to court next Monday and figure this whole thing out," my dad sighed and ran his hands through his hair. "I just hope we get a reasonable judge."

My parents insisted I stay home all week, just in case Carrie tried something at school. Especially with that voice in my head, I didn't trust myself around her. Come to think of it, that voice hasn't been present for a few days now. I haven't told anyone about it yet. And I don't plan to. Just because I know I'm crazy doesn't mean the rest of the world needs to know.

"Zana, come on, it's time to go!" my dad called me from downstairs.

It was court day already. I hadn't been outside for days and because of that, I become slightly paler than usual. I opted for a red plaid skirt, combat boots, black collared shirt and matching plaid tie. I had my messenger bag around my shoulder. I plopped downstairs and my mom went berserk.

"You can't wear that to court!" she shrieked.

"It's a skirt and tie! What else could be more formal? My dress pants don't fit anymore! And jeans are out of question!" I stated calmly, and then I felt it; that feeling in my gut again; something clawing to get out, yearning to taste freedom.

"May I drive there myself?" I asked hopefully.

My parents glanced at each other and then nodded once.

"Yes!" I was super excited.

I grabbed my matching messenger bag and climbed into my car the following my parents to the courthouse. I took my time getting there while listening to my music. I thought about the different ways this could go; I could win, she could win, or this case can be thrown out. I'm not sure how it will go.

I parked my car and quickly made my way inside. As I made my way through the metal detectors, I felt it again; the feeling that I was being watched.

I glanced around, but the only person there were the security guards in charge of the metal detectors. I walked evenly, keeping my gaze fixed on the floor, yet looking up every once in a while to find courtroom six. As I placed my hand on the door knob, I felt my temperature rise; for a moment, I thought I was coming down with something.

Unconsciously I smiled and let myself in.

'Look at her, such a dimwit,' the gravelly voice came back.

'Hello again,' I acknowledged it.

'Still think you're crazy?' it responded amused.

I took my seat and waited for the judge to come out.

'Of course; may I ask what your name is?' I replied.

'You may, but I am not willing to answer,' I heard him smirk.

I got angry at this; it's my body right?! Plus, why the hell do I have to have a guy's voice in my head?! Ugh, completely unfair.

"All rise for Judge Maghovan," the bailiff announced his arrival.

"Alright, let's begin; I would like to get this out of the way today," he said briskly, opening up a folder.

Carrie was called up first to tell her side of the story, then one of her friends was called up; she was a witness. After that, I was called up, followed by Ariel who was my witness. The judge asked for some time to review what he had learned. A few moments later, he made his decision.

"This case was a complete waste of my time," he said brusquely but continued. "Ms. Hyden was clearly acting in self-defense, and Ms. Ream's witness was obviously biased. Therefore, I declare mistrial."

I just smiled big; whereas Carrie and her family were in complete shock.

"But—because of that girl" Mrs. Ream pointed at me, "my daughter missed over a week of school! It's impossible to catch up from that!"

"Oh I'm sorry; I missed just as much but you see, unlike Carrie, I sat at home and studied to catch up and not wallow in self-pity," I shot in her direction.

With that, I turned around and walked out of the courtroom. Although, I was somewhat angry that I had missed school; I don't like make up work. Plus I miss lectures and I miss out on social activities.

"I'm going back to school tomorrow mom and dad," I said once we were out of the courthouse and near the cars. "She won't try anything again because I won't let her."

"Just don't provoke her," my mom warned me.

"I won't," I rolled my eyes. "She'll do that herself."

I drove home, but stopped at Jamba Juice on the way. This entire ordeal had awoken something inside of me; I definitely did not have this voice before in my head. And don't even get me started on the physical aspects about it; the jumping, the running, even that surge of heat earlier today. I also noticed my muscles becoming more defined, even though I wasn't exercising or eating any different. What the hell is going on?

"Zana, before you go to school tomorrow, I should tell you this; please don't tell anyone about the court case," my dad said quickly.

"I won't; Carrie will," I nodded once.

After hearing this, my dad opted of keeping me home for the rest of the week, just so things could cool down before I did return to school. I knew it wouldn't help, but I played along to keep my parents happy.

When the following Monday did come around, Aari and I rushed to school.

"Hey sis is it just me or is there no traffic today?" he looked around as I drove.

"You're just being weird Aari," I retorted and drove to school.

To our surprise, parking lot was empty when we arrived at our destination.

"Break out the calendar, see what it says," I ordered him.

He fumbled with his bag for a few moments, hunting for that familiar orange paper that listed all of our minimum days and days off.

'Jeez, what a moron,' the voice chuckled, and then roared with laughter. 'He may be smart, but he's an idiot is other things.'

'Hey! You shut it! That's my brother you're talking about,' I snapped.

'Hehehehehe,' and the voice disappeared into the background.

"Staff development day," Aari said happily. "No school!"

"For me anyways," I stuck my tongue out at him.

"Aw man," Aari hung his head.

"Don't worry, I'll drop you off and pick you up," I smiled and started driving back home again.

I was excited; entire day to just sleep. All I planned to do today would be to sleep. I jumped back into bed and went back to sleep.

My brain was troubled by weird dreams while I slept. The gravelly voice was there but it wasn't a human who was speaking, it was a dragon. I don't remember exactly what the dragon was saying, but he talked about fire and wings. He talked about being restrained as well.

I woke up sweating like crazy and experiencing a major hot flash. I sat up quickly and threw my blankets off. My heart was racing and my breath was coming out in short bursts.

'Calm, just take deep breaths,' I told myself.

I went to the bathroom and took a cold shower; it felt nice but did nothing to curb the heat that was growing inside me. I threw on a pair of basketball shorts and a t-shirt.

"Dad, I'm going to pick up Aari from school," I called out from the garage.

"Alright," his muffled voice came from the bathroom.

As I was walking to his school, I thought about trying out my running skills that I found out I had, but Aari's school would be almost out; I didn't want to be seen. So I walked like any normal person.

"There she is! Get her guys!" some guys jumped out of the bushes and started pounding me with water balloons.

"Hey! Stop that!" I yelled, but to no avail.

There were about six of them, all throwing water balloons at me. I tried to dodge them but that didn't help. And it made it worse that the balloons were filled with paint, not water. Eventually, I slipped in the puddle of paint that had accumulated.

"This is what you get for beating my sister up!" one of the boys screamed.

She has a little brother? Oh great.

"I suggest you stop right now," I heard an unfamiliar voice.

I peeked up away from the paint covered cement and saw the boys running in the opposite direction. I gingerly stood up, making sure I don't slip on the paint.

"Wait! Please!" I yelled desperately.

I wiped the paint off of my eyes and reached the dry cement. I looked around to see where the unknown voice had come from, but there was no one around. I turned my gaze toward the sky, about to cry out in rage to the heavens when a sight stopped me: Itachi was crouching on the nearby light pole. Not near the light pole, on top of it.

"What the…" my voice trailed off.

How does someone get all the way up there? Maybe with the jumping skills I found out I have? Does he have them too? He stared at me for a moment more, and then just disappeared; like in those magic acts. I just stared at the now empty street light and tried to comprehend what I just saw: Itachi on top of the light, and disappearing. I wandered back home, completely forgetting about picking up Aari. I dwelled on what I saw today, as well as the weird dream I had.

I stopped in front of my house, and then looked down at myself; I was covered in paint. I was sure to make the house a mess. So I lay down on the driveway, hoping that the paint would be somewhat dry when Aari did get home.

"You didn't come to pick me up," he whined.

My gaze didn't move from the sky, "As you can tell, I was ambushed by paint. So I came straight home. Mind telling mom and dad about my condition?"

"I was going to ask you about that," he laughed. "What happened?"

"Apparently Carrie has a little brother who's pissed off at me as well, so he and his friends decided to ambush me," I sat up and cracked my neck. "Like I said, report to mom and dad please."

So Aari disappeared into the house and reappeared moments later with my father.

"This is getting ridiculous," he moaned heading over to the hose. "Hold still."

"Gah!" he hosed me down with ice cold water.

It felt good though; I could feel the heat from before disappearing. In a matter of seconds, majority of the paint was gone.

"Go shower; I'll clean up the driveway," my dad ordered.

I grabbed some rags to dry off the best I could before going in the house. Mom cleans to the point of obsessive-compulsive. Even when everything is clean she has to keep cleaning. I jumped into the shower and let the water do its job. Water mixed with paint swirled down the drain in a whirlpool of rainbows. I sighed to myself. Is this how it's going to be from now on? Will I not be able to walk in my own neighborhood without being ambushed? I sighed again and wondered what would happen at school. If this was how my days were going to be, I honestly don't mind at all.

**A/N: Chapter 3! Already one follower! This is exciting. I know the chapters are getting shorter and that's a good thing! I think…but they're still pretty long. I know it's a slow start and I promise it will start getting good! Thank you for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Itachi Uchiha, Akatsuki, or anything else to do with Naruto. Having said that, this plot, this story and all other characters not associated with Naruto are my own. Thank you and enjoy.**

"BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP" SMACK!

I groaned sleepily and pulled the covers over my head once I had hit the snooze button. I tried to catch a few more winks of sleep before I had to go to school. Part of me wanted to skip again and not go back. A small part of me wanted to run away and never come back again, but I couldn't.

"Sis come on, school starts soon," Aari barged into my room and whipped my blankets off of me. "It's 6:53am and its going to be hot today."

"Urgh, come on, let me sleep," I groaned and tried to pull the covers back.

I sat up in bed and stretched. I stood up and pushed Aari out the door. I threw on the first clothes I saw, which was the outfit from court yesterday: combat boots, red plaid skirt with matching tie, black collared shirt and black fingerless gloves. I grabbed the matching messenger bag and rushed downstairs. I checked the clock and saw the time: 7am.

"Yes! Record time!" I exclaimed to myself.

I strutted out to my car and climbed in. Aari climbed in moments later.

"You forgot your lunch," my brother said, putting the lunch in my lap.

I opened my window and yelled out the door, "Thanks mom!"

She just waved at us and closed the garage as we left. I danced to the beat of the music on the way to school. I plugged in my ear buds and walked onto campus. I caught people staring, but I really couldn't care less. My brother mumbled incoherently.

"What?" I pulled out one ear bud so I could hear him.

"People are staring," he said a bit louder.

"So? Let them," I smiled big and walked into the 700 wing to greet my friends. Everyone greeted me happily and started asking for details. Apparently, some details had already gotten out.

"Did you really go to jail?" Shelby asked me with wide eyes.

"What? No," I said hastily.

"Did her brother really attack you?" Serena asked next.

"Yea with paint filled balloons," I rolled my eyes. "I swear I have blue spots on my stomach still."

After more questions, I didn't want to be here anymore. I just wanted to be somewhere alone, and with my thoughts. I felt as if today wouldn't go my way at all today. Something was going to happen; good or bad.

It turned out that we had a substitute first period; most of the class was absent. Apparently some world famous art fair was in town and today was the last day. So they all went. I was alone in the class except for three other kids. We all stayed in our little corners and did our own work. During second period, since I had gotten back, Mrs. Herb wanted me to tell my life story.

"So...where should I start?" I said, smiling.

I was sitting on a stool in the front of the class looking back at everyone.

"The beginning!" someone called out.

"Well, once upon a time, in a galaxy far far away, the very ripples of time and space were disturbed, and I was born!" I said dramatically.

Everyone laughed. I told them about my life up until that point; it hadn't been that interesting. I was born; I was raised in a normal life. Nothing bad happened to me; obviously I'm not going to tell them about how I was hearing a voice in my head, nor was I going to tell them about my running and jumping, and only if they ask about Carrie, I'll tell. I still didn't want to dwell on that yet.

"Any questions?" I ended my story.

Hands flew up everywhere and I just sighed.

"Only three questions! We're almost out of time," Mrs. Herb said quickly.

She picked on the three people: Dan the football player, Yvette the cheerleader, and Jericho the skater.

"Is it true you went to court?" Dan asked.

"Carrie's mom and dad sued me because they wanted money and they didn't want to admit that their own daughter was at fault for the whole thing; next," I said shortly.

"Is it true you fought over the new guy?" Yvette asked.

"Sheesh, I don't even know him," I rolled my eyes. "And it wasn't a fight because I didn't hit her."

"What are your plans for the future?" Jericho asked.

I stared at him; this question caught me off guard, "Well, I want to be a computer engineer. Maybe I can create a machine that will think for us and make our lives easier; something along those lines."

The bell rang at that. And we rushed to grab our stuff and make it to our next class on time. I was planning on thanking Itachi for getting rid of those boys yesterday but he wasn't present in class today. Carrie and her friends didn't stop giving me dirty looks and Korner just ignored me completely. He didn't even call my name during roll call.

I sighed and resumed my bookwork. It seems Korner was serious; bookwork was this whole class. During lunch, I gave some excuse and went to hide out in the library. Why the hell did Itachi have to be absent today?! WTF. After seeing him on a light pole and disappearing, I had questions for him.

Was I just hallucinating? Now that I think about it, I could have been. But the voice was there. And the boys heard the voice too. So he was there. But the voice was unfamiliar. Ugh, I'm so confused.

My mind was preoccupied for the rest of the day; it felt like a dream. Even after my last class, I didn't really pay any attention to where I was going. I let my legs guide me. I was brought back to reality with a jolt; I missed a step on the staircase and lost my balance.

I fell forward but my body reacted before my mind; hands flew out in front of me, resting on the step ahead and my body arched in a flip and I landed swiftly on my feet and continued my gait. People around me had stopped in their tracks, amazing by what had just happened.

"Zana you bitch! Where the hell have you been? And how the fuck did you do that?" Serena ran up to me and grabbed me in a fierce hug. "Woman you tell me what's been going on or so help me!"

"Serena! We gotta go!" Maggie called out from the car.

"Damn, tomorrow then!" she rushed off.

I stared after her and wandered to my car eventually.

This feeling lasted all week. I began to think that I would never be able to thank Itachi, and that bothered me. I didn't like being in debt; even if it was something this small. I kept playing over and over in my head what would happen and what I would ask him. I had so many questions! Should I ask him how he got up there in the first place? What about the voices?

'Stop right there, you can't tell him about me,' the voice appeared tense. 'You barely know the guy.'

'Wow, for once you're right,' I hung my head.

The weekend was eventless. I studied for upcoming tests and even jumped ahead in my homework. I figured a breath of fresh air would be good for me.

"Hey mom, dad, I'm gonna go for a walk, I'll be back in an hour!" I called from the garage.

"This time, try to avoid the paint if you can!" my mom called back. "Just be safe!"

I started walking away from the house and toward the main street. There was a pathway from the residential area to the main road and the pathway was covered with trees. I walked under the trees and stopped. I glanced around, making sure there was no one around to see what I was about to do.

I jumped. I was expected just a foot, maybe more, but nope. I soared upward through the trees and leaves, about as high as the house next to me. I fell back down toward the sidewalk and landed softly, almost without a sound.

"Holy shit," I muttered to myself.

I straightened up again and jumped this time landing on the roof of the house. I looked around at the view; it was completely different from the ground view.

'Go! Run! Jump! Be free! Something I do not have the luxury of doing,' the voice said in my head, somewhat resentfully.

'Well, you're in me right, why can't you feel it?' I questioned.

'I'm locked in a cage, so I can't feel anything unless you let me,' he, the voice, said.

'I wish I knew how to let you out,' I said sadly. 'I feel like we'd be great friends if we didn't share my body.'

'Ah yes, but soon it shall be only mine,' he cackled.

'Oh hell no!'

I took off at a run. It was instinct now. I jumped from roof to roof, and sped down the sidewalk at speeds I didn't know were possible for a human. I went straight to the mall and kept my time; the round trip lasted about 10 minutes. I walked back to my house normally, and my breathing rate stayed the same. I wasn't even fazed from all of that running!

"What happened to you?" my brother asked when I got home.

"We raced and I won," I smiled mysteriously.

He was thoroughly confused. A part of me wanted to show my parents; I share almost everything with them. Key word being almost. But that voice; something about that voice held me back. I was different; different from my classmates and my friends. Much different from my family and from my colleagues. My body was changing, I was changing, and I could do nothing to stop that.

"Zana, what's up? You've been out of it lately," Shelby said worriedly. "What's going on?"

Of course, I wasn't listening. I was still in la-la land, thinking about what else my body was now capable of.

"ZANA!" Shelby, Maggie, and Serena all yelled unanimously.

"What? Sheesh, you don't have to yell," I said, looking up.

"You've been out of it all week! What gives?" Serena asked, crossing her arms.

"Nothing!" I said quickly, shaking it off as nothing.

The bell rang and I picked up my stuff.

"Hey! We aren't finished yet!" Serena said loudly. "Wait until lunch!"

Great; lunch was when I planned to confront him. I really wanted to corner Itachi and thank him and ask him hypothetical questions, but...argh! Why do I keep thinking about this one guy?!

'Zana has a crush, Zana has a crush,' my inner voice sang.

'Oh shut up!' I said irritably.

'It's perfectly natural,' the voice replied, ignoring me. 'You're sixteen; most men would be good looking to you.'

I just rolled my eyes and went to class. What the hell is going on with me?

During third period, Korner refused to look at me, and Carrie just threw me mean looks throughout class. My heart fell instantly when Itachi turned out to be absent yet again. I started to think I would never be able to thank him for what he did for me. I don't know why it affected me so much, the absence of just one person. I barely knew the guy to begin with!

We began our bookwork once again, and the time dragged by slowly. I finally began to concentrate and do my work; I was on a role! Unfortunately, every time I do begin to concentrate, it's broken by something. This time, it was a nudge.

I shot Ben a look saying, 'what the hell?! I was working!' but he nodded his head in the direction of the Korner's desk. Itachi was handing Korner that familiar piece of yellow paper; an admit slip. Korner nodded once and Itachi made his way back to his designated seat. He was about to sit down, but something stopped him. He walked back to Korner's desk and they spoke a few whispered words. Moments later, Itachi was walking toward our table.

'What what what! Wait what?!' I screamed internally.

Justin, Ben, and I as well as the rest of the class stopped working to stare at what had transpired.

"Back to work people!" Korner snapped automatically.

Everyone's heads went back down and pencils and pens scratched paper. I stared at Itachi as he took the empty seat across from me; and he smirked.

'Did he just…!' I quickly looked back down to hide my embarrassment.

'Awwwww, Zana's in close proximity,' the voice cooed. 'Let me take a good look at him.'

'No! I already embarrassed myself enough!' I shot back. 'Now, let me work!'

'Tch, doubt that will ever happen with him there,' the voice replied with a smirk.

'What should I call you? You know my name, at least give me something to work with,' that thought suddenly popped into my head.

'Abaddon,' he replied smugly.

And then he disappeared, back into the deep unknown recesses of my subconscious. That's a weird name; Abaddon. I'll have to research that; why would he pick that name?

I went back to work and my concentration came back; I was interrupted by the bell this time. Before I could even catch Itachi, he was gone. I struggled through the crowd of people rushing to the door but I was too late. He was already gone.

"Dammit!" I cursed, and then waited for Justin and Ben to come out.

"What the hell Zana! Seriously, you been weird for days! The hell is going on?" Ben said, a bit outraged.

"Sorry guys, I really have been out of it," I said somewhat distracted. "It's just, this whole Carrie thing, and court and just the other day, Carrie's little bro and his friends attacked me with paint-filled water balloons. Itachi came along and scared them off. I just wanted to thank him but he's been gone all friggin' week."

Ben and Justin both stared at me after my little speech; I admit I was a bit emotional about it but they were looking at me like I was crazy; which I was.

"What?" I said raising my eyebrows.

"That's it? You're getting that distracted over some dude?" Ben replied.

"Uhm…well he did sort of save me from drowning in paint," I said slowly.

"Yea, but you barely know the guy," Ben rolled his eyes.

"Come on Ben, if some random chick you knew helped you with groceries and then disappeared, then came back, you'd want to thank her too right?" Justin said lightly.

"Yea!" I agreed.

"Fine, go find him and give him your gratitude," Ben grumbled and marched off.

"What's his issue?" I questioned.

"You don't know? He likes you Zana," Justin replied quietly.

"Wait…since when?!" I yelped.

"Since first day this year," Justin rolled his eyes.

"Oh," I calmed down. "That's just a few weeks. Erg"

I really didn't want to deal with that now; I had no feelings for Ben like that what-so-ever, and I didn't want to get his hopes up.

"Look, just catch up to him; I'm going to find Itachi and thank him so I can finally be done with this and hang out with you guys," I said, turning around and going in the opposite direction.

I would tear apart this school until I did find him. I hunted through my pockets to find my phone, but instead, I found an additional item; a note.

_Meet me at the Cemetery; now_

That was it. Right! I forgot to mention that our school was right next door to a full on graveyard. I guess that's what we get for going to a school that's over 100 years old. The only problem is, I'd have to get past the hall monitors…again. And there was no way I would get in trouble for that.

Wait! Why the hell am I even going to the cemetery anyway?! Who the fuck put this note in my pocket to begin with?! Screw that; I'm going to lunch with my peeps.

'You should go, maybe it's him,' Abaddon whispered slightly in my ear.

'No, I've already been in enough trouble as it is,' I spat back at him and began walking toward my friends.

'Come on, just find a secluded place and jump like before, it'll be easy as cake,' Abaddon said silkily. 'Remember how good it felt to be free?'

I sighed longingly; it did feel amazing to fly through the air like that.

'Fine! But if it's a perv, I'm holding you liable for life and I will start medications,' I responded irritably and went toward the back of campus.

A tiny fence separated the school's soccer fields from the cemetery, and it was pretty easy to get over. Nobody saw me either, which was a miracle with how many kids there are at my school. I walked slowly, my curiosity getting the better of me; there were so many headstones. Some were decades old and some fairly new. I said a quick prayer for the departed.

I looked around to see who I was supposed to meet, and only saw one lone man standing in front of a mausoleum. As I got closer, I saw a name etched into the arch over the doorway; 'Uchiha.'

"Your family is…" I didn't have the heart to finish the question.

"Yup."

"I'm sorry to hear that," I whispered, and looked down.

I guess that's why his eyes are endless tunnels of no emotion.

"It's not your fault," he turned to face me. "To be honest, I didn't think you would come."

I looked up and saw Itachi looking down at me. His voice was icy and his gaze cold.

"Well, I did; I wanted to thank you for few days ago, where you scared off those kids," I said, staring him straight in the eye, determined not to break contact or get embarrassed.

"Oh…you're welcome," he said, somewhat taken aback by the sudden statement.

We fell into a silence, and I refused to break the stare; but I did break the silence.

"How did you know it was me?" he asked quietly.

"I didn't, I took a chance," I replied simply.

"And if it was a murderer?"

"Poetic; a murder in a cemetery."

He just waited until I answered the questions.

"The voice in my head is very persuasive; as for the murderer, I can run fast," I crossed my arms. "Why bring me here in the first place?"

"Akatsuki wants you to join them," Itachi responded quietly, gauging my reaction.

"Akatsuki?" I repeated, dumbstruck.

"It's an…organization for people with…special skills," Itachi explained.

"What kind of skills?" I asked suspiciously.

"Skills that normal people would not understand," his eyes narrowed.

The bell rang in the distance and I whipped around; shit! I turned back around to face him.

"I'll explain more later," Itachi said, walking past me.

I grabbed his arm, "Just one question! What if I say no?"

I saw a smile play at his lips, but he hid it well. He pulled his arm out of my grasp and took a step closer to me. He brought his lips to my ear and whispered delicately, "I'll have to eliminate you, and everyone you hold dear."

His voice sent chills down my spine, the good ones and the bad. He pulled away, gazed into my very soul, and then disappeared, just like that day on the light post. I gathered myself and ran as fast as I could back to class with only one thought on my mind; what the hell have I gotten myself into?

**A/N: I give you chapter four! Work has been on my butt. And I'm trying to find another job so I can finally become independent! So updating has been slow. Plus writer's block…anyways! Thank you for reading! Four followers already, which is pretty awesome. I would like to thank everyone who has reviewed, followed, and/or favorited so far! Keep reading my lovelies and the next chapter shall be posted soon! **


	5. Chapter 5

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Itachi Uchiha, Akatsuki, or anything else to do with Naruto. Having said that, this plot, this story and all other characters not associated with Naruto are my own. Thank you and enjoy.**

Monday was the last time we spoke, and that was when he had threatened me and my family, as well as my friends. His new seat was across from me and even then, we didn't speak. I glared at him once in a while; at least while he wasn't looking at me.

I guess we never got around to talking about me joining this organization. I had considered calling the police when I got home, or at least telling my family, but Itachi had implied that he knew about my abilities far more than I did. Because of that, and only that, I wasn't telling anyone. Well, Abaddon wanted me to leave my family behind and go travel the world, but I'm not going to listen to a voice in my head when it's wrong.

"It's Friday today guys!" Ben said cheerily as we all arrived at lunch. "Who's going to the game tonight?"

"I might, let's see how I feel tonight," I sighed as everyone cheered.

'Did it ever occur to you that Itachi might just be playing a joke on you?' Abaddon drawled.

'Meh, it did, but honestly, who would make a joke like that?' I reasoned.

'There are plenty of sick people in the world; some of them not exactly people,' Abaddon replied darkly.

'Oh, and what exactly are they?'

"Zana! Yoo-hoo! Come back to us from La-La Land!" Maggie rapped my head.

"Ouch! What the hell?! I can't doze off for a few moments?!" I nearly yelled. "Fuck that hurt Maggie!"

"I'm sorry sweet cheeks but someone had to put you in place," Maggie shrugged.

I rubbed my head and winced; she was right. I had been ignoring my friends recently and tomorrow at the homecoming dance, maybe I could get my mind off of what was going on.

"Zana, are you going with anyone?" Serena asked me.

"Nah," I shook my head.

"What about Itachi?" Shelby inquired.

"What about him?" I asked coolly.

Seriously, he was hot, but he had the emotion of a potato. I don't understand what I saw in him, or what I still see in him. Sure his family is dead, but he doesn't have to threaten me or play jokes. I even googled this Akatsuki and nothing had come up; nothing concrete at least.

I just sighed and walked to class with my head down. I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt, I really did. And the naive part of me would.

'Don't go easy on him,' Abaddon warned me.

'I just want to go back to me; the quiet, shy innocent girl,' I begged my inner voice. 'Please just give me that for a couple days.'

I didn't hear a response. I felt a huge weight lifted off of my shoulders and my mind was thankfully empty. I actually paid attention in class for once and it felt great! I spoke to my teacher about all the work I missed and the tests I had to make up and I was walking away to my car smiling to myself. Sure, some random guy threatened my family and me, but what were the chances that it was true?

I was humming to myself, completely ignorant of my surroundings. I threw my stuff into the trunk of my car and turned around to get to the front but I was ambushed by a bunch of the school's toughest gangsters.

"Sweetie you look so happy, wanna share some with me?" the middle guy asked.

He was short and stocky, no hair and had way too many chains around his neck. I looked at him and his friends, and I had no idea how the hell I was going to get out of this.

"Look guys, I don't want trouble," I backed up slowly, trying to put some distance between me and them.

"Sweetie all you gotta do it let me take you to the dance tomorrow; we can have some fun after and you know, the whole shebang, if you know what I mean," he smiled and winked at me.

"Uhm, no thank you, please I have to get home," I said in a small voice.

His smile vanished and his face became ugly, "Bitch, no one says no to me."

I was about to start running when I heard another voice; a voice that was sexy as hell.

"I believe the lady said no," Itachi said icily. "Leave before I take care of you personally."

"Man, whatchu—" he was interrupted by his own screams of pain when Itachi took his hand and bent it backwards forcefully.

"Leave."

And they scampered.

"What is it about you that attracts the bad people?" Itachi mused, as he watched the guys run away.

"Well, ever since you showed up in my life, it's taken a turn for the weird," I muttered, more to myself than anyone else.

"Oh really?"

"I guess I have to thank you for saving me; again," I said slowly, looking up at him. "I'm guessing it's your job to protect me."

"You guess correct; and about joining Akatsuki; don't worry about it now," Itachi murmured.

"How can I not? You told me I would die, along with everyone I know if I don't join," I wanted to scream, but managed to keep my voice even.

"That's just the most drastic measure."

I sighed and felt so much better. I knew they weren't lying about this organization; with everything that has been happening to me, of someone came up to me and told me that fairies exist I would believe that too.

"So uhm, I guess I owe you know even more huh?" I cracked a small smile.

"I guess you do," Itachi replied quietly.

I leaned back against my car and stared at the sky; I had to know more about the organization. Hell, I'm considering joining!

"What do you want? I'll try to help you get it," I said, my gaze still on the sky.

"Well, you are going to the dance tomorrow, and I have to watch you, so how about you just be my date and make everything easier?" Itachi said, and I heard the smirk in his statement.

I immediately snapped back to face him. He had closed the distance between us and I stared at him wide eyed. I saw the look on his face; he knew I couldn't say no. He knew just exactly how handsome he was and he wasn't afraid to use it to get what he wanted.

"Fine I'll go with you, but then we're calling it even," I snapped, and turned to get into my car to finally go home where I could lie down and sleep and try to forget everything.

Itachi's hand shot out and slammed the door shut before I even got a chance to open it. I turned back to face him and he held an intense gaze on his face; a gaze I had seen only in the scarce dreams I had had over the past few weeks. Part of me was screaming to push away, that he was bad news; and the other part was screaming to let him come and take you away forever. Take a guess which part I listened to.

I guess he read the look on my face because in an instant, the moment was gone and he had replaced it with his normal, cold stare.

"So you're afraid of me too," he said, somewhat sadly and disappeared before I could even respond.

All the good feelings that I had minutes ago were gone. My heart wrenched in pain and it took all the effort in the world to not break down and cry with everything that had been going on. I know it's illogical to cry over a guy I barely know but women do it all the time for one reason or another.

I climbed into my car and sped home, thinking about how tomorrow would go. I didn't even say hello to my family. I went straight to my room and immersed myself into my work. I don't even know why I'm so depressed. I hardly know the guy!

Once my homework was done, I immersed myself into my books and my writing. My parents went to church, thinking I was doing homework; at least something worked out in my favor. I was asleep when they got home. And that's how my day was.

Saturday came along and I was getting ready early; Caroline had invited me to dinner with the smart kids from school. I looked myself over in the mirror before I headed out; I was wearing a black dress that came to my mid-thigh and slightly lower than that. It was made of velvet and was ruffled from the waist down. A silver ribbon went around my waist and tied behind my back. I wore a silver chain with a moon at the end of it with a matching silver bracelet. I finished it off with midnight black velvety heels, dark red lipstick, glitter mascara, and dark eyeliner.

"Wow Zana, you look…amazing," April, one of my classmates said with wide eyes.

"Thanks April, so do you," I smiled and said sincerely.

There about ten of us sitting at a table in a small Italian restaurant. I ordered a small salad; I wasn't too hungry.

"Do you have a date Zana?" April asked amiably.

"Yea I guess I do, I don't really feel like talking about it," I muttered, thinking about what Itachi had said the previous day.

Was I really afraid of him? I was afraid of what he would do to my family, but him, not so much. I should convey that to him tonight if possible.

"Zana, you have a date?! Why didn't you bring him along?" another girl, Tara, said in an obnoxiously loud voice.

Everyone at the table fell silent and stared at me. I had known most of these people since middle school, and since middle school, I had always been the smart, shy, simple girl who didn't talk much or get into any trouble; until this year.

"Zana, I would have made room if I knew!" Caroline exclaimed. "Who is he? Where is he?"

"I'm meeting him there," I replied stoutly and began eating my dinner, signaling end of the conversation.

April and I talked about everything; she asked a lot about what happened between me and Carrie, and I was content with her asking. Better to get the truth out. Plus, I always liked April.

"I'll meet you there Zana! Whoever gets there first should wait for the other; it's dark out," April said cheerily.

I guess my mind wandered during my drive because I missed the turn. When I arrived, April was waiting patiently in her car. Parked next to her car and looked about; it was much darker than I was used to. We stepped out and walked to the gym together.

"I forgot to tell you how gorgeous you look today Zana," April said. "I've never seen you in a dress."

"Thanks so much April,'' I smiled. "You look nice as well."

"So, where's your date?" April mused, and looked around.

"Zana has a date?! What the hell, why not tell us?!" Serena's voice demanded.

"We had an argument yesterday so I doubt he's showing up," I shook my head. "It's complicated."

'Complicated my ass,' Abaddon's voice surfaced.

'Hey! You said two days!'

I turned my attention back to my friends.

"Come on Zana, please tell us," Shelby begged me. "We won't judge, promise."

"Nope," I said flatly. "Line's moving. Time to go."

Laura and I decided to share a bag for our belongings.

"See you sexy ladies inside," Serena called out and disappeared into the gym with the rest of the girls.

"Zana, are you coming?" Laura asked, walking toward the gym.

"Yea I'll meet you inside," I nodded toward her.

She disappeared into the crowd that was gathering around the gym entrance. I silenced my phone and placed it in the bag with my shoes; apparently heels weren't allowed inside the gym. I sighed to myself and tried to smile; today was a day to enjoy!

I started walking inside but ended up running into a road block.

"Sorry," I muttered and tried to maneuver around it but someone grabbed my arm.

"Where are you going?" I heard a familiar voice.

I turned around and found Itachi staring at me with an unfamiliar look on his face.

"What are you going here? I thought…"

"You thought I wouldn't show up?" Itachi asked quietly.

"Well, yea," I said, and shifted my gaze downwards.

Itachi let go of my arm and lifted my face to look at his, "My job is to watch over you and protect you. I can't have petty emotions get involved. Plus, you owe me."

"Woo-hoo! You go Zana!" I heard Laura's cry of joy.

"It's not what you think," I said quickly but Laura disappeared back into the gym.

I sighed and turned to face Itachi, "I guess we should go inside."

I turned around and went into the gym. My heart was tight with pain. So, I was just the job? And emotions were petty? I blinked back the tears that threatened to spill over. I guess Itachi was following me; I wasn't keeping track. I looked around and found my friends on the dance floor in two separate groups; one with dirty dancers and one with the clean ones. I smiled and joined Serena and a couple others in the dirty dancing group. I let the music wash over me and Itachi, as well as everything else wrong with the world, disappeared from my mind.

"Itachi is your date?!" Serena hollered over the music.

"Yea," I replied automatically but didn't stop dancing to the music.

I lost track of time; music takes me away. I let it flow through me, moving my body along with the different beats that pumped out of the speakers.

"Hey guys! Got room for one more person in the middle!" Rihanna said excitedly.

I grabbed Rihanna's extended hand and followed her into the middle of the dance floor. I closed my eyes and danced. I felt a pair of hands grab my waist and pull me close; Rihanna butted in between the guy grinding on me and elbowed him in the solar plexus. I smiled my thanks to her and continued dancing. I glanced at my watch and saw the time; 10:15pm.

"Holy shit, I have to go soon!" I yelped and pulled away from the dance crowd.

I went outside toward the water tables and saw Maggie drinking some water.

"You looked like you were having fun," she observed.

"Yea, it was," I smiled.

"Where's your date?" she asked.

I just shrugged my shoulders. I didn't care now. Itachi was just using me to do god knows what.

"Hey Maggie, how's it going? Lookin' sexy as usual," I heard a slurred voice.

"Cameron," Maggie muttered and turned to face him. "Buzz off."

"Who's the cute friend you got there?" he came toward me.

"Back off Cameron, you don't wanna mess with her date," Maggie smirked.

"Well, I don't see him around," Cameron smiled evilly.

"There you are Zana," I heard Itachi's voice. "Ready to go?"

"Uchiha is her date?!" Cameron yelped.

I felt an arm go around my waist, "Is this guy bothering you?"

"No," I shook my head and looked at Itachi, who was standing on my right with his arm around my waist.

"Good," he smirked. "I wouldn't want to hurt him."

"I'll see you on Monday Maggie," I pulled out of Itachi's grip and hugged Maggie good bye before grabbing my things.

"Leaving already?" Itachi asked me as I walked toward the parking lot.

"Yep," I responded.

I was halfway to my car when Itachi appeared in front of me.

"What?" I replied.

I looked him up down and honestly; I was impressed with what I saw. He was wearing black slacks, black shirt, and a dark red tie. His left hand sported a ring on his ring finger and his hair was pulled back into a low ponytail.

"Do I look alright?" Itachi's voice broke through my thoughts.

"Yes you look fine," I bristled and walked past him. "Why aren't you inside?"

"You're my date remember?" he responded coldly.

"Right."

I unlocked my car but hesitated stepping inside. We had a lot to talk about.

"Why don't you ever smile?" I blurted out.

Itachi raised his eyebrows in surprise but didn't answer, "I'll follow you home to make sure you get there safe."

He walked to a CLS Mercedes Benz that was parked across from me, sat inside, and revved the engine. All I did was stare at the beauty of the vehicle that was parked in front of me. It was a beautiful car.

I sat in my car and received a call from my mom.

"Sweetie, we need some milk; can you get some before you get home?" my mom asked.

"Yea sure thing mom."

I drove straight to Safeway to get two gallons. Itachi's car pulled up next to mine as soon as I parked.

"What are you doing?" he asked coldly.

"My mom called and wanted some milk; that against the law?" I replied coolly.

He narrowed his eyes, "I'll come with you."

I just shrugged my shoulders and just went inside. Itachi stayed by my side. The silence between us was so thick it could be cut with a knife. Just as I was about to grab two gallons of milk, Itachi's hands came out of nowhere and grabbed them for me.

"Hey!" I protested.

"I can't let you carry them, I'll look like an idiot," Itachi said pointedly.

"Oh…thanks," I responded, a little embarrassed.

The cashier took one look at us and smiled, "You guys make a great couple."

I glanced at Itachi and responded with a, "Thank you."

Itachi grabbed the gallons before I could reach for them and we walked back together to my car.

"Hey, so, uhm…that symbol on your ring, what does it mean?" I asked awakwardly, trying to break the silence.

"It means scarlet," he said quietly.

I frowned. "Why scarlet?"

He turned to face me, eyes glowing red with shapes that could only be described as commas. So that's what I saw on the frist day of school! His eyes really were red! And from that moment on, a feeling of content settled over me; I wasn't crazy.

"How…how did you do that?" I managed to get out.

"It ran in my family," he murmured and his eyes went back to his normal onyx color.

He put his hand in his pocket and retrieved something.

"Give me your hand," he said quietly.

I held out my left hand, and I felt a ring slip onto my finger.

"What is this?" I asked confused and looked at the ring. It also had a symbol on it "What does it mean?"

"Destiny," he murmured.

He looked me in the eyes and mentioned, "You are now officially part of Akatsuki."

"WHAT?!" I nearly yelled but I was cut off with his hand covering my mouth.

"Monday, cemetery, meet me," he said shortly and then went back toward his car. "By the way, you owe me a dance. And don't lose that ring."

He hopped into his car and waited for me to enter mine. I never agreed to join this little club; why would he put me in it now? I sped off with him following me.

"How was the dance sweetie?" my mom asked as I walked into the house.

"It was a lot of fun mom," I said, smiling lightly. "I'm going to bed now. I promise I'll help you around the house tomorrow."

When sleep claimed me, a pair of beautiful red eyes haunted my very dreams and nightmares for the nights to come.

**A/N: Wow. I'm so sorry for taking so long to update guys! I been having writers block and I'm moving soon. Work has been really busy as well. This story is going to take forever to write if I do this, but I will get it done! Please review! **** Thanks for reading!**


	6. Chapter 6

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Itachi Uchiha, Akatsuki, or anything else to do with Naruto. Having said that, this plot, this story and all other characters not associated with Naruto are my own. Thank you and enjoy.**

"Aari! I'm leaving without you if you're not down here in time!" I hollered from the garage.

I'm sure he heard me because I could have sworn I heard his muffled yells. I shrugged my shoulders and walked out to my car. Across the street from me, I saw my neighbor Brian, climbing into his car. I smiled and waved at him. A confused look crossed his face as he waved back at me.

We went to the same high school; he was a senior and I was junior. I don't know why we haven't talked before. I climbed into my car just as Aari arrived.

I revved the engine and turned up the music, but Aari's hand shot out and turned it off. "Do you want to go deaf?"

"Sheesh, we're still young, chillax a bit," I shrugged my shoulders and cruised down the street toward school.

First day of the week and today would be a minimum day at school. That means we get out at 12:30pm instead of 2:30pm. On the bright side, it meant less time in class; but it also meant less time with friends.

Memories from Saturday night came back to my mind; Itachi's voice rumbled through my memory.

'Going on another date?' I heard Abaddon's drawl.

'It's not a date,' I retorted to myself.

'Keep telling yourself that sweetie,' Abaddon said lightly before disappearing back into my head again.

I sighed.

"Zana! You and Itachi looked so cute together at the dance!" Serena exclaimed once I entered the building.

"We didn't even dance together," I rolled my eyes and sat down next to her.

"Well, Maggie told me what happened outside with Cameron; he stuck up for you," Serena nudged me and smiled. "So, what's going to happen between you two?"

"I don't know Serena; frankly I think he asked me so other girls would leave him alone at the dance," I pulled my knees close and buried my head in them.

"Oh come on, you know that isn't the reason," Serena scoffed.

"Serena's right; he seemed pretty comfortable with his arms around you," Maggie noted.

"You guys are imagining things," I shook my head.

The bell rang and I stood up and stretched.

"Agh! The week begins!" I groaned as my arms reached toward the sky.

Lunch couldn't come fast enough; I guess I was excited to see Itachi again. I was curious about this organization; maybe he would tell me more. Third period with Korner wasn't too bad anymore; Carrie and Korner ignored me now and didn't give me issues. Korner couldn't grade me unfairly because my work was perfect, and my test grades were always in the high 90s.

"Guys! I got some stuff to take care of today so I'll see you tomorrow at lunch!" I waved to my friends as I walked past them.

"Oh! She's going to meet Itachi you guys!" Shelby exclaimed! "Let's follow her!"

I chuckled and headed to my fourth period class to drop off my stuff. Shelby and Serena had followed me that far.

"Guys, seriously, you won't be able to follow me, and please stop," I said seriously. "I promise I'll tell you all about it tomorrow."

"At least admit you're going to see Itachi, then we'll stop bothering you," Shelby looked at me and crossed my arms.

"Fine, yes I'm going to see Itachi," I huffed. "Happy now? I have to go! I'm running low on time. And there is a lot I have to talk to him about."

I said that last part more to myself than to anyone else. I made sure that no one was around before I made the hop over the fence into the cemetery. Right as I landed, my phone went off.

"Hello? Hey dad; everything okay?" I asked worriedly.

"Everything is fine; your mom and I just had to make a quick trip to Los Angeles to see the property; we'll be back soon!" my dad said and hung up quickly.

"Love you too dad," I mumbled into the phone, even though he wasn't on the other line.

Just as I was about to pocket my phone but it rang again. I took a deep breath to relax myself and answered. It was just an automated message telling me that the hospital I volunteer at was going under construction so I wouldn't have to go in today. I guess I should be happy about the news; it meant I got the house to myself for a couple hours before my brother got home.

I made my way to the entrance of the Uchiha tomb, and I saw Itachi sitting on the steps outside of it. I took a seat next to him a few feet away.

"So…why am I part of the organization now?" I asked quietly, my gaze fixed on the ground.

"I know you'll say yes once you hear the options," Itachi responded quietly.

"And what are the options?" I asked sharply, my head snapping up to face him.

He stood up and I followed in suit. I stared at him defiantly as I waited for his response. Itachi saw the look on my face and smirked.

"Choice number one," he stated and took one step closer to me. "If you don't join, you and your family will die by my hand."

I tried to hide my shock and disdain but I wasn't good at it; and he noticed.

"Choice number two," Itachi closed the space between us.

I stared up at him and saw his dark eyes boring into mine. I tried not to get lost in them.

"If you join, then I won't have to kill anyone," Itachi murmured quietly.

"So…if I join, no one dies?" I asked hopefully.

"No one dies," he repeated. "But, you will be forgotten."

My eyes grew wide, "Forgotten?"

"Your friends, your family, anyone who you have ever met in the last sixteen years of your life, will have you erased from their memories," Itachi explained.

"Wait a moment," the gears clicked in my head. "That's blackmail!"

"Well, yes, of course," Itachi stated, like it was the most obvious thing ever. "Then you would have just said no."

"You don't know that," I replied quietly.

"I do," he said shortly.

I clenched my hands tightly and turned away; so I either die, or be forgotten. I don't know which one is worse. I turned back toward him and put on a straight face, trying hide the turmoil within.

"I guess I have no choice do I?" my voice cracked.

I whipped around and started running back toward school. I just wanted to crawl into a corner and cry. I'd be joining an organization, which I know nothing about and I would never see my friends and family again. Everything they have given me would go to waste.

The tears began to fall before I could stop them; I ran into a road block. I turned my now tear-stained face up to see what the road block was and I saw Itachi standing there, staring at me with a stoic look. I tried to maneuver around him but his arm shot out and stopped me.

Before I knew it, he had his arms around me in a soft hug. I buried my head into his chest and gripped his shirt tightly as I sobbed into his chest. I tried to think clearly, but my emotions took over. I just cried my heart out and Itachi held me close as I let it out. Once I had quieted down, I sniffled slightly and loosened my grip, but I didn't let go. I took a deep breath and inhaled his scent; it was perfect. The right amount of nature and spice, with a dash of sweet. He quickly let go of me and stepped away..

"Why are girls so emotional?" Itachi questioned me as we walked back toward school.

"Well, there is natural process that girls go through called puberty, and it turns them into blubbering wrecks," I rolled my eyes and looked away and wiping away the last of my salty tears.

"Right," Itachi replied. "So you're joining?"

"I guess I have to," I sighed.

I didn't want to die; I didn't want anyone to die. Being forgotten didn't sound too great either, but I didn't have a choice in the matter.

"Then don't take that ring off, and don't lose it," Itachi stated.

We ran the rest of the way to school. We arrived in class right as the bell rang.

"You're learning quickly," Itachi smirked when we both sat down.

"Not quickly enough," I muttered.

Class passed by quickly enough. I wanted to get home as fast as I could, so I could spend whatever time I had left with my family. I was walking in the hallways when someone grabbed my wrist.

"Where are you going? You have to come with me to headquarters," Itachi said quietly.

"Wait, what? Now?! I thought we waited until I was eighteen or legal or done with school or something or other," I hissed. "I'm just a teenager!"

"So am I, and here I am," Itachi muttered.

I jerked my hand away, "I'm not ready."

Itachi's eyes narrowed, "I'll see what I can do."

He turned around and walked away; I watched him leave with mixed emotions. I walked to my car slowly and thought about the day; I had now joined an organization that was a mystery to not only me, but the world as well. I had already looked at all the negative points, now it was time to look at the positive side of all of this.

The first positive point: I could start over from scratch. No one would be holding me back and I had the freedom to do what I would want. I could reinvent myself into a new person and try new things. It's like being handed a clean slate; but at a steep price. I had no choice but to pay the price. Maybe Itachi would tell me more tomorrow about this organization.

I arrived home to an empty home; Aari was still at school and my parents were in Los Angeles taking care of business. The first thing I did was plug in my phone into the surround sound system and blasted my music. Dancing always took my mind off of things. I played my current hits list; the music was loud enough to drown out my thoughts but not loud enough to mask the sound of the doorbell a few minutes later.

"Hey Darren what is up," I said when I saw my neighbor.

"Zana," he smiled. "Were you having a party?"

"A one person party," I smiled mysteriously. "How can I help you today?"

"Oh yea, there's a guy at my door asking for you," Darren lowered his voice and jerked his head toward his house.

I poked my head out the door and looked to the right: Itachi was standing at Darren's front door. My face twitched; why was he over there?! I smiled stiffly and waved to Itachi.

"Yea I know him; he's a…friend," I turned to face Darren.

"Great! I didn't want to send a random dude over here," Darren said, scratching the back of his head. "I had nine-one-one on speed dial just in case he turned out to be a weirdo."

'Oh don't worry; he's the weirdest weirdo in the books so far,' I said inside my head.

'He isn't weird, just different,' Abaddon snapped.

'Oh since when did you care?' I snapped right back.

"Is he your boyfriend?" Darren asked lightly. "I saw you guys at homecoming together."

"He is not—nothing like that," I sputtered, turning red from embarrassment.

Darren just chuckled and went back to his house. I waited for Itachi to come to the door; I heard one of my favorite songs come on in the back ground.

"Nice house," Itachi said, stepping inside.

I stood there with my mouth agape; did he just invite himself in?

"Uhm, thanks," I muttered and shut the door. "Why were you at my neighbor's place?"

"Just asking questions," Itachi shrugged his shoulders.

"Like?"

"None of your business," Itachi stated and removed his shoes.

"Uhm, would you like something to drink? Or eat?" I asked lamely.

Itachi raised his eyebrows, "No thank you, but where is your bathroom?"

I pointed down the hall. As soon as I heard the door shut, I raised the volume and started dancing again. The bass shook the windows and the lyrics bounced off the walls. The world disappeared and it was just me. I closed my eyes and engulfed myself in the sounds. My hips swerved to the beat and I could feel sweat forming on my forehead. I don't know how long I was in a trance, but it was broken when the music was shut off suddenly.

"Hey!" I complained and saw Itachi holding the remote.

"It was nice to watch but it's rude to ignore your guests," he pointed out.

"You…you were watching?" I stuttered.

"Yup, I think you'll fit in quite well at Akatsuki," his face held traces of a smile.

"Hey! I have dignity! Unlike other women," I said bright pink.

"You still owe me a dance," Itachi said, his voice somewhat playful.

He switched the music back on and a slow song played in the background; Justin Timberlake, how romantic (not). Itachi came up to me and took one of my hands into his and wrapped his other arm around my waist and pulled me close. I placed my other hand onto his shoulder instinctively and came closer to him.

"Just relax, I don't bite," he said soothingly.

"I'm trying, I've just never danced with a guy before," I muttered.

"Really? Well, then I am honored to be your first," Itachi bowed his head slightly

He led me through a series of steps; then let go of my hand and put it around my waist and pulled me closer. I put my hands around his neck and laid my head on his chest. It was a nice experience. The song came to an end too quickly. We stepped away from each other awkwardly and looked away.

"So, will you show me around?" Itachi asked quietly.

"Sure, come follow me," I linked arms with him and took him around the house.

I talked my head off trying to ease the nervousness inside of me. I went on and on about the trinkets we had around the house; my family and I travelled a lot and we always got cool stuff from wherever we went.

"My room at last!" I said, smiling.

Itachi cocked his head to the side, "You're really excited."

"Is that a bad thing?"

"No, but I'm guessing this is the real you."

I stayed quiet.

"You were hiding yourself before," Itachi continued.

"Well, friendship has to start somewhere," I shrugged. "Honestly, if I'm going to be working with you, might as well be friends right?"

"Right," his voice trailed off and he looked away. "Why were you holding back before?"

"Let's explore that shall we?" I plopped onto my bed. "Many women have trouble talking to gorgeous, sexy men; and on top of that, you're an emotionless potato. Not many people would know how to act around someone like that."

"An emotionless potato?" Itachi reiterated and his eyebrows rose.

I nodded once and spread my arms, "Welcome to my room."

"It's very…"

"Pink," I finished for him. "Yes I know. My parents did not want to spend money re-painting and re-doing a room that I would be leaving soon for college. Well I'm not really going to college now am I?"

"If you want to," Itachi shrugged and sat down next to me on my bed.

He put his hands on it and pressed down firmly. "Your bed is soft. Mind if I lie down?"

"Go for it," I stood up and stretched.

I stood up and started tidying up my room a bit.

"I bet you're tired after a long day," Itachi mused.

"Yup."

"Why not lie down and rest?"

"You're in my bed," I replied shortly.

"We can share," Itachi smirked and laid back.

"What?" I stopped and starred at him.

"Use me."

Very, VERY dirty thoughts crossed my mind and I turned away so he couldn't see my bright red face.

"You know, those fan-fictions you read have really messed with your mind," Itachi observed.

"I'll admit my mind goes to the gutter sometimes, but at least it's all in my head," I said fiercely and turned back to face him.

I sat down and the bed and lay down. My face was dark red and burning hot. He moved over and made room for me. Itachi put his arm around me and pulled me closer toward him. I closed my eyes and tried to relax. I thought about it and realized many women would kill for the situation I was in right now; Itachi and me alone in a huge house, cuddling on a single twin bed. I took in a deep breath and relaxed. I lived in the moment. My mind went in and out of sleep and Itachi's arms stayed wrapped around me. I thought I was dreaming the whole thing when I heard the front door slam shut.

"Zana! I'm home! And I have to show you…someone!" Aari called from downstairs.

My eyes snapped open and I tried sitting up, but Itachi's arms were still around me.

"Itachi! Wake up!" I hissed.

"What?" he opened his eyes groggily and looked at me.

"You either have to leave, or hide," I whispered. "My brother is home."

"Let him find us," Itachi said lazily and closed his eyes again.

"No! He has someone with him and I do not want to lose my right to a free life!" I managed to squeak out.

"Come to Akatsuki now and you don't have to be afraid anymore," Itachi murmured and sat up and stretched.

He sauntered to the closet and hid in there. I quickly started to change into pajamas. I was halfway done when Aari burst into my room.

"HOLY SHIT AARI! I'M CHANGING! LEARN TO KNOCK YOU BUTT!" I yelled quickly covering myself up.

"Sorry sorry sorry!" he quickly shut the door and ran out.

At that, Itachi opened my closet door and peered out at my covered form.

"You better shut that door if you want to live," I said in a deadly quiet voice.

The door shut and I finished changing. I opened my room door and saw someone familiar standing behind Aari.

"Who are you?" I asked sharply.

The guy standing behind Aari looked very similar to Itachi; shorter hair, more intense eyes, and much more emotion.

"Sis, this is Sasuke; Sasuke this is my sister Zana," Aari said uncertainly. "He's new to school so I thought I would invite him over."

"That's nice of you Aari, but we're not allowed to have people over when mom and dad are gone," I said calmly. "I won't tell if you don't."

"His family was murdered almost five years ago, it was all over the news," Aari said quietly.

"I'm sorry about your family Sasuke," I said quietly.

I resisted the urge to tell Sasuke about his older brother; something told me that there was bad blood there. Itachi never mentioned his little brother before. I thought he had died along with the rest of the family. Aari and Sasuke went to the game room.

I went back into my room and shut the door. I opened the closet to find it empty, except for a note.

_Meet me tomorrow at the cemetery again. Sorry for leaving on short notice._

My heart fell; I didn't know why Itachi was making me feel this way. I trudged downstairs to make some lunch and I heard the doorbell ring.

"Zana! How are you? I thought I would come surprise you!" my friend Carmen careened into me and hugged me.

"Carmen! Hi!" I got excited.

"Wanna play videogames?" she asked excitedly.

"Sure! My bro and his friend are playing right now," I smiled. "Maybe we can join them."

We went upstairs and joined them.

"Mind if we join?" Carmen shot them her dazzling smile.

We played until Carmen's host family came to pick her up.

"I'll see you later Zana! We should hang out more!" Carmen said as she left.

Sasuke left a little later, but I wasn't there to witness his departure. I was fast asleep in my bed, which only a few hours ago, was occupied by the most handsome man I know.

**A/N: OMG FINALLY DONE! Serious writers' block on this chapter; trying to get back into the groove. I hope I can post this entire story this year! Thank you for all the new followers and favorites! And the reviews! Read my lovelies and enjoy!**


	7. Chapter 7

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Itachi Uchiha, Akatsuki, or anything else to do with Naruto. Having said that, this plot, this story and all other characters not associated with Naruto are my own. Thank you and enjoy.**

Next day, Aari and I went to school like we always do. This time, no red lights! We made it right as the bell rang, and I didn't even get to talk to my friends. I owe them explanations for my disappearances at lunch lately. And I'd be ditching them today too to see Itachi, again.

Like yesterday, I dropped my stuff off in my fourth period class and went to the cemetery. My friends tried to ambush me but I managed to talk myself out of it today too. I swore that I would meet them tomorrow at school during lunch.

I took the shortcut to the cemetery once again and met him at the tomb again.

"Good, you're here," Itachi said shortly. "Sit down we have a lot to talk about."

"About what?" I asked suspiciously.

"Business, we don't have much time so please do not interrupt," Itachi began.

I nodded my head and sat quietly.

"Leader-sama said it was okay for you to graduate high school and then join us, but until then, I am your guardian," Itachi stated.

"That's good news; who's Leader-sama? What is Akatsuki about?"

"No interruptions."

"Sorry," I said in a small voice.

Itachi breathed out, "It's fine. Akatsuki an organization for people with a special gene mutation. We call it the 'ninja gene.' It's hereditary and dying out. It's the reason for my Sharingan."

"Is the Sharingan what you showed me on Saturday outside of the grocery store?" I replied.

"Yes; it's the mutation passed down in my family," Itachi replied shortly.

"So, if you had a little brother, he would have it too?" I asked innocently.

"Why do you ask?"

"I met him yesterday after you left," I said quietly. "My brother is his friend. My other friend has a crush on him. And he looks like you."

Itachi didn't respond and I continued.

"You have the same eyes; his show anger and your eyes show sadness, and sometimes regret," I continued on, forgetting he was there. "Something happened. He hates you."

"You talk too much," Itachi said harshly.

I looked down and shut my mouth. He was right. I had said too much and I hit a nerve. The bell rang in the distance and I stood up quickly, but Itachi stayed put. I squatted down to his level and used my hand to move his face to face me. He looked at me and put his hand on top of mine.

"I'm not afraid anymore Itachi," I said quietly.

He held my hand in his and stood up. In an instant, we weren't in the cemetery anymore, but in front of the classroom.

"How did you—" I said shocked.

"I'll show you later sometime," he held back a smile.

I nodded mutely and followed him inside. We had a test today in calculus class and Itachi was done first. He always was.

When the bell rang, Itachi and I walked together back to the parking lot, earning plenty of stares from everyone. I never really listened to rumors but I began to hear whispers about Itachi and I. Only I knew the truth though; he was part of an organization that killed people, assigned the watch over me.

We stopped suddenly halfway to the lot.

"Thank you Zana," Itachi said suddenly.

"For what?" I asked confusion written all over my face.

"I think you know," he said quietly. "Go home. I have some things to take care of."

He walked back in the direction we came from, earning dreamy stares from almost all the girls he passed. When I got closer to my car, I saw Brian standing near my car; since when did he want to talk to me?

"Zana, hi! How are you?" Brian smiled at me.

"Good," I replied, giving him a weird look.

He never spoke to me; why now?

"I just want to give you this invitation," Brian held out two envelopes to me. "My family is throwing a party this weekend. Steve is holding a separate party for the younger crowd at his house at the same time."

"Oh, thanks for the invites," I said, taking them from him.

"Well, one is for Itachi, I was hoping you could give it to him, you know, since you guys are always together," Brian shrugged his shoulders.

'Ah, so that's why he wanted to talk to you,' Abaddon smirked. 'Just to get to your boyfriend.'

'He is not my boyfriend,' I snapped. 'But you're right. He's only inviting me to get Itachi. God people are so transparent.'

"So you'll come with him?" Brian said hopefully.

"I'll give him the invite for you," I replied. "See you around."

I climbed into my car and got a call from my mom. My parents were back from LA and apparently we were out of milk again. I gave my parents one invitation and saved the other one for Itachi. I started my homework, but honestly, my heart wasn't in it. I wasn't going to university, I wasn't going to see my family ever again after graduation, so I wasn't motivated to even do my homework. For the next year and a half, I would have to act like everything was okay.

Next day during third period, I gave him the invitation.

"Pst, Itachi," I got his attention.

Justin and Ben kept working but Itachi's gaze moved up from his work. I slid the invitation over to him, and then the bell rang. Itachi shot out of the room like a bullet, and I took my time. I was going to spend this time with my friends and explain everything to them; everything except Akatsuki.

"Zana! You're back!" Serena yelled happily and hugged me.

Shelby also came running at me at full speed and hugged me full force.

"Alright missy, you tell us about Itachi and your love affair," Serena said slyly.

"Well, I have a crush on him, I admit that," I said slowly. "I was visiting him the past couple days at lunch. We had a lot to talk about from the dance."

"Oh yea about that," Shelby inquired. "How did that happen?"

"Well, Friday after school, some gangsters ambushed me and tried to force me to go to homecoming with them," I rattled off. "Itachi showed up and scared them off. I repaid his kindness by being his date to homecoming."

"Well it sounds like you had a lot of fun," Maggie commented. "What happened with Carrie?"

"Well, we went to court and the judge dropped the case, saying that a kindergartener could have figured it out," I rolled my eyes. "She and Korner just ignore me now in class. I'm just glad they don't make my life miserable."

I left out the parts about Itachi and I and the bed, and Akatsuki, and our meetings at the cemetery. I mean, what kind of organization says 'join or die'? About halfway through lunch, Itachi came over to our spot.

"Zana, a word please," he said emotionlessly and held up the envelope that held the invitation.

I was acting like an idiot with my friends but instantly stopped when Itachi showed up. All of my friends fell silent as I walked toward Itachi. He pulled me away from the rest of my friends.

"What the hell is this?" he whispered harshly.

"It's an invitation for a party?" I raised my eyebrows.

"I don't go to parties," he replied shortly.

I flinched but stared back at him with a cold expression, "It's a party invitation not an engagement ring. You don't have to go if you don't want to. Sheesh."

I turned and walked back toward my friends. I'd be spending the rest of my life with him and his little club; I didn't want to spend whatever time I had left with him. He had also turned on his heels and stormed off. I swear, I had no idea what word could describe our relationship.

"Great job Hyden, you're such a loser," I heard Carrie's voice ring down the hall.

I ignored her and went back to talking to my friends. She wasn't worth my time at all.

"Hey bitch, I'm talking to you!" Carrie grabbed my arm and turned me to face her.

"Back the fuck off slut, you already lost to me once, want it to happen again?" I sneered.

"Plus she's got us now," Maggie said threateningly, cracking her knuckles.

Carrie looked scared out of her wits. I smiled big and waved to her as she walked away.

"Bye bye now," I curled my lips into my creepy smile.

Until the end of the week, Itachi didn't speak a word to me. I really didn't mind at all. It gave me time to spend with my friends and family. I could also pretend that nothing was wrong with my life, that I wasn't going to be gone and forgotten in a matter of a year. I could pretend that I was going to go to college and get a degree and settle down with my true love, and have a family, but only pretend. Reality came and went; I lived in a fantasy world for the next few days, until the day of the party; which came all too soon.

**A/N: What the hell; why is this chapter so short?! I guess I'm excited and want to update quickly. I couldn't find a great cut-off spot; it was either a super short chapter or a super long one. I chose short. I promise more stuff will happen. Slowly she'll begin to learn the ropes and meet everyone I promise :D keep reading my lovelies!**


	8. Chapter 8

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Itachi Uchiha, Akatsuki, or anything else to do with Naruto. Having said that, this plot, this story and all other characters not associated with Naruto are my own. Thank you and enjoy.**

The day of the party came quickly. I'm sure Itachi was still mad at me; hence he wouldn't be showing up to the party. I was glad; I didn't want to deal with his bullshit.

Since the place was right across the street, I didn't need to drive, and I could take my time getting ready. I chose a strapless, turquoise sundress with a black cover up. I usually never wear dresses or makeup, but today I made an exception; sandals, lipstick, eyeliner and I even straightened my hair.

It was quite long actually; it went all the way down to my lower back when it was straight, and it was dark brown, almost black. My brother opted to stay home; he didn't know anyone there. My parents and I walked to Brian's house across the street. According to the invitation, the party for the kids didn't start for another hour.

While the adults were just talking, I got bored. The other party couldn't come fast enough! I was excited to meet new people. I never hung with this crowd before; I knew they invited me to get Itachi to come, but I didn't care. I wandered around the house, listening to bits of the conversations that everyone was having. I went to the kitchen and got some soda. A sugar rush would help me right now. I downed one glass and then another.

"You do know those were the alcoholic drinks right?" I heard Brian's voice.

"They were?" my eyes grew wide. "I didn't taste anything."

"Well, that's how good my mom is at mixing drinks," Brian smiled. "We're heading to Steve's place now. Wanna walk with me?"

As we walked down the street, I saw a familiar figure near Steve's door.

"Is that Itachi?" Brian squinted.

"Yea," I said offhandedly then changed the subject. "Who else is gonna be there?"

"A lot of other people," Brian said distractedly.

We walked past Itachi and I threw him a smug look; I was still kinda mad at him for ignoring me all week for no good reason. I followed Brian inside and there was loud music pumping and people were everywhere. I think this would count as my first party. I could feel the alcohol kicking in; my face felt warm and I could feel a happy feeling spread.

"Zana! You're here! Where's Itachi?" Steve asked jovially.

"He should be here, we passed him on the way in," Brian said.

"I really could care less about him right now," I said, crossing my arms. "What the plan here? We just stand around all day?"

"No, we were actually going to start a game of spin the bottle," Steve said slyly.

I rolled my eyes, "A little juvenile, don't you think?"

"We're here to have fun sweetie, so loosen up a little," Steve slipped his arm around me and led me to the living room.

"The closet is right there," Brian pointed to the door in the corner. "And don't worry, it's big."

"That's good to know," I responded dryly.

"Hey Zana, long time no see," I heard a playful voice that I never thought I would hear again.

"Jake, how you been?" I asked with a small smile.

Jake is the number one playboy at school. I guess this was the "popular" crowd; lucky me.

"Hey Itachi! Glad you could make it," I heard Steve's voice carry down the hall into the room.

I sat down on the couch and looked down. I felt someone sit on my right, and my left. I glanced on both sides; Anthony was on my left, and Itachi was on my right.

Fuck.

Now, let me tell you about Anthony. I used to have a HUGE crush on him freshman year, and carried into sophomore year. And he knew. Everyone knew. Only problem was that he didn't like me back. So I got over my crush. See the thing is he always flirted with me anyways, to push my buttons. I found that out much later.

Itachi on the other hand, I just ignored him completely.

"Alright, the game is as follows!" Steve said loudly. "You spin the bottle, and you have to spend five minutes in the closet with whoever it lands on; even if they are the same gender. Who wants to go first?!"

No one volunteered at first. I glanced around at everyone; the girls were giggling, waiting for the men to volunteer. I just wanted to get it over with.

"I'll go first," I stood up and volunteered.

"Well that's a surprise," Steve smiled. "All yours honey."

He handed me the empty beer bottle. I placed it on the ground and spun it. While it was spinning, I took my seat again. I wonder what would happen if it landed on me?

"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh," everyone said simultaneously.

I peeked at the bottle and it was pointing in my direction, but to my left; Anthony was my partner. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I stood up and entered the closet behind him.

"Go get her Tony!" I heard Jake's muffled yell through the door.

Honestly, I had never played this game before so I had no idea what I had to do. Seriously, who came up with this game? Sit in a closet with someone who you don't even know? Who does that? Well, apparently I was about to.

We were standing in the darkness with only the light from the crack under the door illuminating our sight. My eyes adjusted immediately to the darkness and I went straight for the light switch. I'm pretty sure Anthony was under the assumption that I still had a crush on him, but that was no longer the case.

"You know Zana, I've been watching you," he whispered excitedly.

"Gee, that's not creepy at all," I said sarcastically, flipping on the light.

"What was that for?" he replied fiercely.

"So I can see?"

"We're supposed to be in the dark, and share moments that would be with us for a lifetime," Anthony sighed.

"Maybe for you, but I intend on sharing those moments with someone I am actually attracted to," I replied calmly.

"Wait, I thought you liked me," Anthony looked at me with wide eyes.

"Yea, two years ago, when I was a lot more naïve than I am now," I retorted. "You were playing me back then, and I figured it out. If you honestly like me now, it's your loss."

Anthony looked defeated and looked away and I instantly felt bad for what I had said.

I sighed and responded, "Look, even if we did have something, it would never work between us. My fate has already been decided."

"What does that mean?" he asked confused.

I went up to him and gave him a soft kiss on his cheek, "It means we're better off like this."

The door opened at that moment and Jake was standing there with a huge smile on his face.

"So, how did it go?" Jake was itching to get the details.

"Good," both Anthony and I responded at the same time.

I went back to my seat, and Anthony went into the kitchen with Jake on his heels. I didn't move from my spot. People went in and out of the closet. Itachi even went in once, with a girl named Macy. I doubt anything good happened because Macy came out of the closet before time was even up; tears were streaming down her face. When Itachi's turn came, everyone held their breaths. I just rested my head in my hands and waited patiently for things to get exciting; and my wish came true because the bottle was pointing at me. My eyes grew wide and I chanced a glance at him; his eyes were in shock as well.

I stood up first, straightened my dress out, and walked into the closet. Itachi followed closely behind. The door shut and the time began.

My eyes automatically adjusted to the darkness, and Itachi was just looking at me.

"Why did you come? I thought you didn't come to parties," I stated harshly.

"I had to," he replied.

"If it wasn't your job, would you have come?" I asked quietly, afraid for his answer.

I turned around and leaned my head against the wall. I took deep breaths to try to curb the wave of emotions threatening to take over. Never in my life as a guy, no a man, made me feel this way. Why Itachi? Why here and why now?

I felt Itachi come closer and I tensed slightly. I straightened my posture and pushed back the emotions. Itachi's lips came dangerously close and I had to close my eyes and tell myself to breathe.

"I would have come, no matter what," he murmured silkily.

My heart skipped multiple beats, and Itachi didn't move a muscle. He placed one of his hands against the wall to support himself and his other hand slipped around my waist. He turned me to face him.

"What happened in here? Between you and Anthony?" he whispered silkily.

"N-nothing," I stuttered, my voice barely above a whisper.

"Then why did you kiss him?"

"Why did you ask me if you already knew?" I whispered fiercely.

"I wanted to hear it from you," he murmured softly.

My respirations as well as my heart rate increased. My heart felt like it was going to explode. I didn't have a clue as to what to do in this situation. Itachi's face came closer to mine and I freaked. I looked away and shut my eyes; I could feel his lips near my ears, lightly caressing my skin.

"No need to be scared," he whispered seductively. "I won't hurt you."

His lips moved down my neck, just barely touching my sensitive skin. An ecstasy I had never experienced before came over me, and I let out a light moan. I could feel Itachi smirk and come back up toward my face. His warm breath sent shivers up and down my spine; I had never been this close to a man before. I didn't know how to react.

"We don't have much time left," he whispered, his face directly in front of mine.

I parted my lips slightly, intending to speak, but no words came out. I turned to face him, his hands went around my waist and he pressed closer to me. Our noses were touching, and the door opened. His eyes flashed red and in a nanosecond, Itachi was on the opposite side of the closet.

"So, how did it go?" Brian smiled and looked at both of us in turn.

Itachi just shrugged his shoulders and walked past Brian. I was just standing there, mouth agape and in shock. Did he just use his Sharingan?

I took my seat again, but this time, Brian took the seat to the left.

"So, what happened?" Brian asked me quietly.

"Nothing, we just stood there," I shrugged my shoulders.

I did my best to camouflage my increased breathing rate, but I think Brian may have noticed because he sent a wink in my direction. Well, I have my mind made up: no more parties.

For the rest of the party, I chatted with a lot of people; Itachi never left my side. The party ended at around 3am, and everyone headed home. Itachi walked me home.

I stopped halfway and began to speak, but he cut my off with a finger to my lips.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have held that grudge; it was stupid," he muttered.

I stared at him and my voice returned, "I forgive you. Honestly, I probably would have done the same."

"Sleep well," he said, turning around and walking away.

I watched him depart, and walked back to my own house. I fell asleep later, and dark shadows plagued my dreams for the rest of the night.

**A/N: Seriously? Another short chapter?! Well, not as short as before but shorter than the rest. Sorry, babbling. So I noticed that one person read my story from India! Hollah that's my home country C: I am enjoying this so much! Typing up this story, reinventing my characters. I have no internet at home, so I type at home, and go to Starbucks and upload the chapters. Hopefully I get internet today! The technician is coming to fix it. Anyway, back onto topic! Thank you for those of you following and keeping up and thank you guests who made it this far! I greatly appreciate your support, and keep reading my lovelies! Thank you for everything! **

**Oh and also, if someone does manage to find an error in spelling and/or grammar, please message me and let me know where it is so I can fix it! I have been blessed and cursed with the ability to read fast; and if it is my own work, my eyes just skip over mistakes. Don't get me wrong, I love re-reading my stories, but it would make life so much easier XD. That is all and thank you!**


	9. Chapter 9

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Itachi Uchiha, Akatsuki, or anything else to do with Naruto. Having said that, this plot, this story and all other characters not associated with Naruto are my own. Thank you and enjoy.**

Sunday rolled around, and I opened my eyes to the bright sunshine pouring in through my windows. Unlike most people, I just pulled the covers over my head to shut out the sunlight and tried to return to REM sleep, but to no avail. My dreams disappeared into my subconscious, waiting for night to fall again so they may return to plague my mind.

I felt the covers being pulled off of my bed and I groaned again. This time, I disappeared under the pillow.

"Time to get up!" I heard a sharp, yet oddly familiar voice; the pillow was pulled out of my grasp.

"What?!" I sat up in bed groggily and rubbed my eyes.

Instead of Aari standing near my bed, I saw Sasuke instead.

"What are you—" I was cut off with his hand coming to my throat.

"I know about you and Itachi, and anyone who is close to him as much as you are, will die," he said darkly, applying more pressure to my windpipe.

I struggled to breathe as his hands crushed my only pathway to my lungs. My lungs screamed for air, and I couldn't breathe. In a split second, there was a blur and the pressure was released from my neck; I could breathe again. As I massaged my throat, I turned to face the action. Itachi had Sasuke pinned against the wall, in the same chokehold Sasuke had me in moments before.

"Uh—" I started to say.

"Your family is at the doctor's office and will be back this afternoon," Itachi said coldly, his eyes never leaving his little brother.

Itachi leaned in and before I knew it, Sasuke had stalked off. Moments later, I heard the front door slam shut.

'The doors were locked last night! How did he get in?!' I screeched to my mind.

'He picked the lock,' Abaddon responded dryly. 'I swear woman, I thought you were smart.'

"Are you alright?" Itachi's voice broke through my train of thought.

I looked up to see a concerned look on Itachi's face.

"Yea," then my voice took on an angry tone. "What the hell was that about?"

"Nothing," his voice dropped low.

"That certainly did not look like 'nothing', " I stood up and crossed my arms. "I almost died and I have the right to know why."

He stayed silent and kept his gaze locked on me.

"What?" I said sharply.

When he didn't answer, I walked past him into the bathroom. I looked into the mirror and saw a bruise coming up on my neck. I touched it gingerly and winced; that is going to hurt for a couple days. But I can't have anyone see it otherwise people would ask way too many questions. I would be whisked away to Akatsuki earlier than expected and my time with my loved ones would run out.

I washed my face quickly and went back into my room. Itachi was still there and his eyes grew wide slightly when he saw me again.

"Decided to tell me what that was about?" I asked coolly.

"He knows about us," he replied shortly.

"What's there to know? We're friends," I said quietly. "Does he think we're more?"

Itachi just shrugged his shoulders and pulled out a small jar from his pocket.

"What's that?" I asked quizzically.

"It's a serum of my invention," he said quietly and came closer to me. "It will help with the bruising."

He handed me the jar, "Make sure to apply it every hour; the bruise should be gone by the night time."

"Uhm, thanks," I replied uncertainly and applied it quickly to my neck.

He went back to my bed and sat down. I observed his appearance today; his hair wasn't pulled back like it usually was; and he was sporting a fitted black shirt and jeans that fell snugly around his waist. I had to admit, he looked fucking sexy.

"You look cute in your pajamas," he smirked.

Well, his mood took a turn.

"Don't get off topic," but I blushed anyways and turned away.

I stepped into my closet, shut the door, and changed into suitable clothes; skinny jeans and a t-shirt. I pulled my boots on and stepped back out. Itachi was leaning back on his arms, and looked me up and down.

"He also has a crush on one of your friends," Itachi mused, not taking his eyes off of me.

"That is no reason to try to kill me," I rolled my eyes and applied the balm once more. "She has one on him too."

"She does? How do you know?" his eyes grew wide.

"She's my friend, I know," I rolled my eyes. "Now come on, we have some business to take care of."

"What business?" Itachi asked suspiciously.

"You'll see," I said, turning away from my dresser.

In a flash, Itachi was in front of me, blocking my way to the door.

"I suggest you tell me now," Itachi said, his eyes boring into mine.

He placed both of his hands on my dresser, effectively blocking off all routes of escape.

I looked at him and swallowed; he looked really hot now, especially with that intense look in his eyes.

"Besides your Sharingan, does the hotness also pass down in the family?" I quipped, then clamped my mouth shut; uhm, what?

"So, is that what you really think?" he asked, amused.

"Who doesn't think that? Seriously. Have you seen how women and other females look at you?" I retorted. "You know exactly how sexy you are and can be, and you know how to use it to your advantage. I am not going to fall for that innocent act."

With that, he just smiled; an all-out, real smile. It was a smile that I had never seen on him before. And it was beautiful. I could watch that smile all day and I would do anything to keep that smile on his face. It was all natural and was not forced at all. My heart melted.

"I thought you didn't smile," I held back a laugh but smiled. "You should smile like that more."

His face immediately went back to normal and the smile was gone, "You didn't answer my question."

"Yes, I think you are handsome," my face tinged pink and my mouth rattled on. "But you look much better when you smile like that."

Itachi stepped away, his face unreadable. I took this chance and booked it. I had already embarrassed myself enough and I needed to get away. Itachi had a way about him; I couldn't hold back and I spilled secrets. This was a bad thing. As I ran down the hall, Itachi appeared out of nowhere and caught me in mid-run in an embrace and held me tightly.

"You don't have to run from me Zana," Itachi whispered and didn't let go.

"But I made a fool of myself," I spoke softly, returning his embrace.

"Well, no, but I do have something to hold against you now," Itachi shrugged.

I pulled away, "What?"

He placed his hands around my waist and pulled me close, his face inches from mine. My eyes grew wide and my heart rate increased.

"So, as long as I use my looks, I can get anything out of you," Itachi murmured, and smiled seductively.

"You would stoop that low?" I said in a low voice.

"If I have to in order to get the job done, then yes I will," he replied shortly, and stepped away from me.

"Well, I'll let you know now; it won't work on me anymore," I crossed my arms.

"You sure?" he raised his eyebrows.

"Yes," I rolled my eyes. "If I can resist you, then I can resist ninety-nine percent of the men on this planet."

We stared at each other for a while then I spoke, "I need your help."

"Oh, with what?" he spoke coolly.

"With a plan," I responded with the same tone of voice.

"And if I say no?"

"I'll do it myself."

"I won't let you."

"Will you help me if I tell you what it's for?"

Itachi thought about it for a moment, "Depends."

I put on a crooked smile, "I know how to get rid of Sasuke for a while."

In an instant, Itachi was in front of me again, inches from my face, "Keep talking."

My eyes grew wide and I stepped back, "No seducing or I won't tell you."

"You're evil."

"I learned from the best."

We stared at each other for a moment and then I spoke.

"Sasuke likes my friend, and she likes him," I said. "We get the together, and she'll keep him busy for a long while. Sound good?"

"I think I know now why Leader-sama wants you to join, besides your mutation of course," Itachi added hastily. "Let's do it."

"Alright, but I do all of the talking," I smirked.

"I have been ordered to protect you," Itachi said sternly. "You have no idea how many people have tried to kill you already."

"Why are you bringing this up now?" I sighed.

"It felt like the right time," he shrugged his shoulders. "You drive."

"And you follow? I don't think so," I said angrily.

"Fine, I'll come with you," he sighed. "Where to first?"

"Sasuke's place."

We both went downstairs and I drove. Itachi gave me directions to an apartment complex fairly close to my house.

"He lives right here?" I raised my eyebrows.

"You'd be surprised with what's around here," Itachi mused. "Akatsuki headquarters are practically in your backyard."

"Not literally right?" I asked worriedly.

Itachi just looked at me.

"Promise me you won't do anything," I said when I stepped out of the car.

"If your life is in danger, I will step in," Itachi said darkly.

"No," I shot back. "You want me to learn right7? Let me handle this on my own."

"Fine," Itachi said, sitting back in the car. "Have fun."

I walked to the door and I felt something; well I felt more that I should have. I felt Sasuke's presence on the other side of the door, and he was holding something.

I stepped closer to the door and lowered my voice, "I don't want to cause any problems. I just want to talk; about Carmen."

The door opened slowly and Sasuke stood there, knife in hand, ready to attack if need be.

"What about her?" he asked suspiciously.

"She'll meet you at Big Spoon tonight at seven, don't be late," I said stoically, then turned around and walked away. I could feel evil eyes on me, but I forced myself to not turn around. My heart pounded in my chest and when I sat in the car, I immediately put my head down.

"Scary?" Itachi muttered quietly.

"Yes, sort of," I responded. "But it's okay now."

Halfway to Carmen's house, I broke the awkward silence, "He really hates you doesn't he? What exactly did you do?"

Itachi didn't speak, but turned away instead, hiding his face. I dropped the subject.

We arrived at Carmen's house without incident. I spoke to her about meeting Sasuke at 7pm, and she was excited. She left to get ready for her big date while Itachi and I headed back to my house.

"Good thing my family isn't home yet," I noted as I entered my house.

"Well, they won't be home for a while," Itachi smirked.

I glared at him.

"Don't give me that look," Itachi said dryly. "You never asked."

I just turned my back on him and went to my room, ignoring him completely. I pulled out my phone and dialed Carmen. I wanted to hang out with her, and I would have if I knew my parents wouldn't be back so late.

"Hey Carmen," I smiled when she picked up. "Wanna hang out before your big date?"

"Oh no you don't," Itachi appeared in front of me.

"Eep!" I freaked out and fell back into my bed. "Hang on Carmen!"

I thought I could win this match, but I was severely outmatched. He climbed on top of me, pinning my legs down with his hips. One hand grabbed both of my wrists and pinned them over my head; his last free hand took my phone.

"She'll call you later," Itachi said in his iciest voice and hung up.

He tossed my phone aside and looked deep into my eyes. What on earth was he doing?!

His eyes travelled upward toward my hands; I followed his gaze and he laced his hand with mine. As he let go of my wrists, I felt the cool touch of his ring against my skin.

"Why is it destiny?" I wondered out loud.

"Your ring?"

"Yes; how come my ring says destiny?" I asked once again.

"Why do you ask?" Itachi furrowed his brows together.

"I'm curious," I stated.

He let go of my hands and before I knew it, we had switched spots.

"How did you—"

"I'll teach you everything you need to know when the time comes," Itachi stated quietly, and rested his hands behind his head.

I laid my head on his chest and took a deep breath in; his scent permeated my nostrils and filled me with joy.

"So? Why does it say destiny?" I repeated a third time. "Why not gray?"

Itachi looked at me with his deep eyes, "Gray? Why on earth would it say gray?"

"Well, your ring says scarlet, for your eyes; I figured it would say gray because that's my eye color," I looked up at him. "Is that how it goes?"

He just started laughing; a sweet, melodious sound that rang throughout my room and made an impression on my very soul. I swear I was in love; but I'm only sixteen. What would I know about love? So I pushed that thought aside.

When his laughing subsided he spoke, "Everyone in Akatsuki has different abilities. Mine is the sharingan, which is scarlet; hence the symbol for scarlet."

"So, again, why is mine destiny?" I said, now somewhat cross that my question was being avoided altogether.

He leaned up and rested on his elbows, his face closer than before, but not so close that it was awkward.

"It's your destiny to join Akatsuki; destiny is what brought us together and destiny is what will keep us together," he whispered seductively.

I widened my eyes at this statement, and Itachi lay back down. I didn't know how to respond to that; I couldn't tell if he was being serious or not. I lay my head down on his chest and wrapped my arms around him; he didn't resist. I shut my eyes and I could feel myself falling asleep. I resisted as best as I could, but I fell into a limbo state between awake and sleep. I didn't know if I was dreaming or not, but Itachi was softly stroking my hair, humming a soft tune.

The phone rang suddenly and woke me up from my stupor. I tried to get up, but Itachi held me down.

"It's too comfortable, don't get up," Itachi murmured. "There's an answering machine."

And he was right. The call went to the machine and I could hear my mom's voice echo throughout the house.

"Call me as soon as possible sweetie, love you," my mom said cheerily and the line went dead.

"Come on, let me call her back," I said a few minutes later, trying to sit up again.

"She said as soon as possible," Itachi smirked. "Right now, it isn't possible for you to get up."

I made a face and struggled some more. Before I knew it, he was on top of me once again, his hair falling onto my face. His hands held him up, preventing him from squashing me. He looked at me and then got off.

"Are you letting me call her?" I asked hopefully.

"Yes," he stated.

"Thank you," I said happily and gave him a hug from behind.

I called my mom back, but she told me what I already knew; they would be back around six. I turned back to Itachi, whose facial expression held contempt.

"Uhm, is everything okay?" I asked hesitantly.

"I have to go," Itachi said tersely.

"To, Akatsuki?" I asked slowly.

"Yes."

"Why?"

"I have something I have to do."

"But, don't you have to watch over me?"

"Hidan will keep an eye on you for now," Itachi said in a deadly voice. "And if he does anything, he'll suffer my wrath."

"Who's Hidan?" I asked quizzically.

Itachi sighed, "You ask way too many questions. He's another member."

"He's not going to do anything to me is he?" I asked worriedly.

"Nope, I promise I'll see you on Monday alright?" Itachi murmured quietly, and disappeared into thin air.

Another presence took his place. I just sighed and lay down in bed, waiting for my family to return home.

On Monday at school, Carmen was super excited. She told us all about her date, and how I had set her up with her new boyfriend, Sasuke.

"Who's this Sasuke dude?" Maggie asked suspiciously.

"He's in eighth grade, but he's fourteen," Carmen said excitedly. "That's not too bad right?"

"Nope," Serena shrugged. "Just, kids that age are much more immature than we are."

"Trust me, he's not immature," Carmen insisted. "He's mysterious, brooding, and oh-so sexy."

"Zana, what do you think?" Maggie looked at me.

"Well, he is cute," I said pointedly. "He's my brother's friend so he came over once. That's how she met him. I figured they liked each other so I set up a date between them. Am I a matchmaker or what?"

Carmen just smiled and hugged me.

Lunch rolled around pretty quickly. Rumors flew throughout school about Itachi and me. Ridiculous stuff too. I knew none of them were true because I knew the real reason he stayed with me all the time; it was his job. Everything that happened between us was just the job. He mentioned it himself; emotions were petty. Itachi joined us finally for lunch. My friends couldn't stop smiling.

"Guys, is something wrong?" I crossed my arms.

"You guys are just so adorable together," Shelby squealed. "Everyone is talking about you guys!"

"Rumors are that you guys ditched lunch last week to go somewhere alone," Serena added slyly.

"Who told you that?" Itachi said suddenly.

"Someone," Serena crossed her arms and looked at Itachi. "Are you denying it?"

"No, I just want to know who told you," Itachi said coldly. "And teach him a lesson about spying and eavesdropping."

"Uhm, Itachi, it's just a rumor," I muttered.

"A true one," he hissed so I could hear.

"The memories are going to be gone in a year anyways, relax," I hissed back then smiled at my friends. "Yea we ditched. Are you going to tell on us?"

"Not unless you tell us where you went," Maggie smiled.

"We went walking," I shrugged.

"Sure, walking," Serena rolled her eyes.

"Well well, this is Zana Hyden," we heard a deep, unfamiliar voice. "She's cuter than you made her out to be Itachi."

I turned my head to face the voice and saw a very well built man with hair as white as snow. He was wearing a cut-off and tight skinny jeans with boots topped off with a weird pendant.

"And who are you?" Maggie crossed her arms.

"Oh, I'm sorry sweetie that's need to know," Hidan flashed a dazzling smile that didn't reach his cold eyes.

If I thought Itachi's eyes were empty before, Hidan's were scary. They had anger; lots of anger and a glint of crazy.

"Zana, meet Hidan," Itachi said through gritted teeth. "By the way Hidan, you should have waited until after school."

"Oh right, we don't want to get in trouble do we?" Hidan winked at me. "I just wanted to see the pretty girl Itachi. No need to get so…clingy."

I glanced at Itachi and his eyes flashed red for a moment.

"Until next time beautiful," Hidan winked at me and walked off.

"Who was that?" Serena at once questioned.

"He's a friend who goes to college," Itachi said immediately. "Don't worry about him."

Maggie pulled me away for a moment, "Zana, are you sure he's good for you?"

"What do you mean?" I asked confused.

"You and Itachi, I know there is something going on," Maggie rolled her eyes. "It's obvious."

"Maggie, it's not what you think I promise," I pleaded with her. "Just drop it. I swear on my mother that we aren't dating or hooking up or anything."

"Swear on my mom as well?"

"Swear. I know he's sexy as hell, and his smile is beautiful, and his laugh is melodious, and his scent is just intoxicating, but I can't get involved with him for that reason: he's bad news," I finished darkly.

"Then why hang out with him at all?" Maggie asked.  
"That's a question I can't answer," I finished quietly. "Drop it Maggie please."

And drop it she did. We walked back to our friend circle to enjoy the last few minutes we had of lunch.

**A/N: Chapter nine end! Currently working on chapter ten as we speak. I think I'm two thirds through my first notebook. There are two notebooks. So there is still a long ways to go. Thank you for reading and keeping up! Enjoy my lovelies and keep reading!**


	10. Chapter 10

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Itachi Uchiha, Akatsuki, or anything else to do with Naruto. Having said that, this plot, this story and all other characters not associated with Naruto are my own. Thank you and enjoy.**

_~Day before graduation~_

"The time has come; we need to discuss the plan," Itachi said strictly.

The two of us were sitting at the tomb, discussing about tomorrow. It was the only place private enough that we knew about where no one would follow us or eavesdrop. Tomorrow would be the day I graduated high school and go on to join Akatsuki. Itachi was prepping me for the events tomorrow.

"So tomorrow, about five minutes after the graduation ceremony, there will be a bright flash of light and you will be a stranger," Itachi explained calmly.

"Wait, so this light erases everyone's memory?" I replied.

"Yes, but it doesn't affect those with the mutation," Itachi said matter-of-factly.

"Does it have to be five minutes? Can I at least say good bye?" I asked quietly.

Itachi didn't answer, and I took that as a no. So I stood up and began walking back to school; it was the last day I would be spending with them.

"Fine, seven minutes, but I can't give you more," Itachi replied emotionlessly.

"Thank you," I whispered sadly, and strengthened the dam that held back all of my emotions.

Graduation came all too quickly. It was hard to keep the sadness inside; my mother noticed.

"Sweetie is everything okay?" my mom asked me worriedly.

"Sorry mom, I'm just sad that I won't be seeing some of these people again," I sniffled.

"Oh honey! Don't worry! You'll make plenty of friends in college," my mom hugged me. "Now come on; we don't want to be late now do we?"

I nodded mutely and followed her to the car. My dad drove; my mom was rambling on about how her little girl was all grown up and on to do great things. My brother just sat there in the seat and stayed quiet. I could tell he was bored out of his mind. I stared out the window and went through all the great memories we all had shared together. They flashed through my mind at an alarming rate.

Graduation went by slowly; I savored each moment. But my mind wandered. It wandered back to when Itachi first came into my life and when all this craziness began. I guess you could say that was the day I fell in love.

Yes I said fell in love.

I didn't think that would be possible; I remember Maggie telling me that he wasn't a good guy. And she was right. He was a criminal; a vigilante would be the proper term. I learned that Akatsuki was a mercenary organization that helped people; for a price. Itachi wouldn't tell me more than that. He did start training me in art of deception thought. Since we didn't get much time to actually train, he talked a lot; telling me how to hack, or how to seduce people to get what I wanted.

Back to the feelings; now that I'm eighteen, I am much more mature than I was a year and a half ago when I first met Itachi. I figured out months later that he may have actually had the same feelings for me, but the logical part of me brought up the seduction technique. In the end, I went with logic. Itachi was a pro at getting what he wanted, and I had trained myself to resist that. Yet I had still fallen for him. That was the only thing keeping me from breaking down in front of everyone. I knew Itachi would be there to protect me, and he would stay with me no matter what. It was his job, but as long as I could stay with him, I don't mind. I thought those feelings would have disappeared months ago, but they didn't; they were something I would have to live with now until I would forget or find someone else to help me forget. They weren't on my mind most of the time, but since I had nothing else to think about during the speeches, my mind went here.

The ceremony ended abruptly with applauds and cheers. Everyone was off to parties, dinners, and family time. I was on my way to a new life; a complete reset. I stood up and wandered around a bit; I saw my family in the distance, but there were plenty of people in the way. I also Itachi; a smiled played at my lips. He looked no different from when I first saw him. I had a choice in front of me then; do I say good bye to the people who raised me for the last eighteen years or do I go to my future?

Unfortunately, the choice was made for me; there was a blinding flash of light and people looked around confused. The moment passed. I looked desperately back to my family, who held confused looks on their faces. They began walking back toward our—their car, leaving me behind. I stood there breathing deeply, keeping inside the sadness and hurt that welled up inside of me. I turned my back on them.

"You ready?" I heard Itachi's familiar cold voice.

"Hang on," I said stoutly and looked around once more.

All of my friends were gathered in a circle, enjoying their last moments together. It was better this way; if I said good bye, it would have been so much harder to leave, and much harder to hold back my emotions.

"Fine, let's go," I said coldly and walked away.

Itachi fell into step with me and led me to his car. I climbed into the passenger seat and he drove off. I just stared at my hands in my lap, pushing in all the mixed up emotions I was feeling at the moment. I was glad that we were enveloped in silence on the drive; if I spoke now, there's no telling what would come pouring out.

Ten minutes later, Itachi was pulling into the parking lot of a huge office building with the name "RaoBank" in orange letters at the top.

"The bank?" I asked perplexed, temporarily forgetting what had happened.

"You'll see," he visibly smirked and led me to the door.

We entered the building and went straight for the door labeled 'Employees Only.'

"Uhm, are you sure?" I started to ask then stopped; he obviously knew what he was doing.

The people in the bank, tellers and bankers, didn't even bat an eyelash as we walked through the door. There was a short hallway that ended at three elevators; we took the one on the left. Instead of going up, we went down; far down.

I kept my gaze fixed to the door and quickly removed my graduation hat. The elevator pinged, signaling the arrival to our destination.

"Welcome to your new home," Itachi said quietly.

I stepped out of the drab elevator into what can only be described as a man-cave. There were couches surrounding one large flat screen television. Wires trailed out of the television and connected to a multitude of gaming systems. My eyes were wide with wonder as we passed by this wondrous room. The next room we passed looked like a computer lab; but instead of Dell or Apple, it was filled with Alienware laptops; top of the line. Frankly, it seemed that the place was temporary. I figured with the type of work these people do, permanence wasn't part of their vocabulary.

I got excited and strayed from the hallway into the computer room, my eyes shining with excitement.

"Not so fast," Itachi grabbed my arm and smirked. "You have to check in with Leader-sama first."

I whipped around to face him, "This is headquarters?"

"Yup, in your backyard," he mused and let go of me. "Follow me."

He led me down the hall to the very last door and knocked once.

"Enter," a muffled voice came through the door.

"It's done," Itachi replied as soon as the door was opened.

"Is she with you?" a voice came from a swivel chair behind a desk.

This Leader-sama was a very enigmatic fellow. Itachi spoke very little of him and whenever he did come up, Itachi became very tight-lipped.

"Zana Hyden," the chair swiveled around to face us. "I've been waiting for you."

"How long is a long time?" I asked hesitantly.

He just smiled crookedly, "Welcome to Akatsuki."

I just stared at him, taking in his appearance; he had bright, strawberry blond hair. It was almost orange if you looked at it with an odd angle. His ears were heavily pierced and his eyes were a deep shade of purple.

"You know my name, isn't it fair that I know yours?" I raised my eyebrows.

"Pein," he replied. "Itachi will show you around and tell you everything you need to know. He is also going to be training you and teach you how to do certain…things."

"You make that sound really dirty," I muttered, turning red.

He raised his eyebrows then faced Itachi, "In no way will you teach her anything like that."

"Well then, what will I be learning?" I questioned.

"Shoot a gun, kill a man with many types of instruments, the art of camouflage and how to use your abilities to make the world a better place," Pein shrugged and leaned toward us, resting his head in his hands. "Enjoy."

With that, Itachi grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the office. My gaze never left Pein's; I couldn't pull away.

"What the hell?" I pulled away and looked at Itachi once we had left Pein's office.

"You don't go into his office unless you are forced to and you don't stay there longer than you need to," Itachi said tensely.

My eyes widened, "You're afraid of him."

Itachi's eyes shifted, "Everyone is."

"And you're telling me this because…?" I gave him an incredulous look.

"You're part of the family now," he said wryly. "Now, let me introduce you to everyone."

He offered me his hand. I looked at it for a moment; was he purposefully leading me on? I took it hesitantly; his hand closed around mine with a soft grip and he pulled me along back down the hall, back to what could only be called the living room.

"Welcome to Akatsuki," he commented when we arrived.

Everyone looked up, but they weren't looking at us; they were looking at our attached hands. Automatically, we detached; I turned bright red while Itachi's cheeks held the softest shade of pink.

"The one with the white hair—" but Itachi was cut off.

"We can all introduce ourselves pretty boy," Hidan smiled and stood up. "Remember me sweetie?"

I nodded mutely and Hidan just walked over with a big smile. He slipped his arm around my shoulders and led me to the center.

"You already know me, but not everyone else," Hidan smirked.

"I know that," I tried to pull away from him but he tightened his grip.

I was forced to be the center of attention but I did learn who everyone was; I had never seen an odder group of people in my life. A few of them seemed fairly normal, but the rest of them…wow.

One by one, they introduced themselves.

"Deidara," a blond haired man piped up.

"Sasori," a red haired man spoke quietly.

"Kisame," a deep voice said; I looked at him and noted pale blue skin with dark blue hair and a shark-toothed smile.

I smiled nervously and quickly moved my attention onward.

"I'm Tobi! You're cute," a man's voice came through an orange mask.

"Thanks," I muttered.

"Urg, another girl, which means less money for us," a dark haired man sighed lying down on the couch. "Kakuzu, shut it, I'm glad there's another girl now," a blue haired lady snapped and then her voice softened. "I'm Konan; it's so nice to finally meet you."

Her amber eyes showed warmth, something that was absent in everyone else. I instantly felt a connection with her.

"Nice to finally meet all of you," I smiled and looked at all of them one by one.

"I'll show you to your room," Itachi said, stepping forward and grabbing my attention.

He took my hand and pulled me back down the hallway. We were followed by whistles and cat calls.

"I know exactly what to get you for your birthday now Itachi!" Hidan called out, amidst laughter.

He gripped my hand tighter and pulled me along faster. We walked up multiple flights of stairs until we reached another long hallway.

"Your room is near the roof," Itachi said quietly. "I persuaded Leader-sama to leave it as it was; just try not to collect too much stuff. Plus…I know you like the rain."

"Thanks," I said quietly and he pulled me along.

He pushed the door open and ushered me inside. I let go of his hand and took a look at the room; it was huge. It was almost a thousand square feet but no windows anywhere to be seen; just a plain white room with an attached bathroom.

"You can do whatever you want with it, but remember, we have to be ready to move at a moment's notice," Itachi said solemnly. "I'm right across from you if you need anything."

He left abruptly, leaving me alone with my thoughts. I walked to the center of the room and plopped onto the floor. I stared at the wall for a while until the epiphany came; my life was just like the wall, a blank slate. It was ready to be painted and remade. I was fortunate for this reset on my life; I was starting over.

I honestly hadn't fully grasped the concept that I would be alone though; my own family wouldn't remember me ever again. I was the only one with those memories. My friends were shadows of the past; as the saying goes, don't live in the past, but I think I could make an exception. I stood up suddenly and pulled off my gown; I took a long, hard look at my diploma and then proceeded to tear it up. I marched back downstairs into the room everyone was in and took a deep breath before I spoke.

"I need matches and some gas," I said clearly. "Anyone know where I can find those?"

"Come on sweetheart, I can show you exactly where those are," Hidan smiled wide and stood up. "Follow me."

He led me to a storage closet, a fairly large one too.

"And why would you need these?" he questioned, handing them to me.

"I wanna burn something," I shrugged my shoulders.

Instead of handing me the matches and gasoline, he held them behind his back, "If you want them, come and get them."

So that's how he wanted to play then?

"Well, if that's how it's going to be," I sighed and then put on my saddest voice.

I turned around to walk away but, "Come on, don't be like that."

I smiled internally.

'Oh, so Ms. Zana is using the guilt card; I'm impressed,' a familiar voice popped up.

"Will you help me then?" I turned around, eyes sparkling.

"Yea, sure," Hidan said hesitantly.

I led him to the roof where I threw my graduation hat, gown and diploma into a pile.

"You can do the honors," I motioned to the pile.

"Wait, you're burning that? Don't you want to keep it? Sentimental value and all?" Hidan asked me, his eyebrows were raised.

"What? No, it'll just cause more pain that's all," I shrugged. "No point in that."

With his attention diverted, I grabbed the matches and gasoline. The clothes were then doused, then lit. The smell of burning cloth reached my nose. I closed my eyes and turned my face upward; I was free at last.

Three weeks later, I was sitting at the foot of a sleeping bag surrounded by paint and supplies. I had started painting the blank walls around me. Since I couldn't furnish the room, I figured I could at least paint it what I wanted. My sole possessions included one alienware laptop, and a suitcase filled with an assortment of disguises.

Right after the burning Itachi had showed up to my room with a briefcase and a manila envelope. He didn't say a word, just handed them to me and left.

Inside were money and credit cards; I really didn't need much, just a car and some clothes and paint, along with a computer. So I made three stops: first, the Dodge dealership where I picked up a top-of-the-line Charger. Second stop was Michaels, where I got all of my art supplies. The last stop I made was the mall, where I picked up a multitude of clothes as well as necessary electronics; computer, cell phone, etc.

I focused my mind back onto my painting. It was turning into a rainbow of flowers, which was odd.

'Flowers? Seriously?' Abaddon spat. 'Paint the circles of hell; the chains that hang off the red lava walls, that drip red with the blood of the filth that roam this earth.'

"Strong words," I muttered to myself.

"I didn't say anything," I heard a voice.

I jumped out of my skin, "Itachi! Don't do that! Fuck that freaked me out!"

"Time to train, let's go," he said icily. "You shouldn't be scared so easily."

"Come on, cheer up," I whined and stood up. "What happened to the beautiful smile that I saw almost two years ago?"

"Don't dwell on the past," he snapped. "Let's go."

That was when the grueling, year-long training began.

**A/N: Wow, that took a while to write. Family visited, work got in the way, la-dee-da-da. Excuses, excuses. Anyways, Chapter 11! Thank you for reading lovelies! And please review! PLEASE PLEASE! Gracias! By the way, thanks so much for keeping up everyone! Keep reading my lovelies!**


	11. Chapter 11

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Itachi Uchiha, Akatsuki, or anything else to do with Naruto. Having said that, this plot, this story and all other characters not associated with Naruto are my own. Thank you and enjoy.**

_~14 months later~_

The word different doesn't even begin to cover how much I have changed, mentally and physically. We were still in my hometown, so I consistently saw EVERYONE who I knew from school, including my family; no one recognized me. In the beginning, I would cry myself to sleep every night. Later, I realized that crying would not do anything to change my situation. I focused on getting better at the multitude of skills that Itachi was in charge of teaching me.

First, I learned how to shoot a gun; many types of guns. Next, I would have to take it apart and put it back together in under a minute. Not only did I learn about guns, I learned to use many other weapons: swords, knives, chemistry. I memorized many types of vehicles; how to hotwire them, how to run them. Hacking was next on the list; the government, companies, private computers. Itachi taught me to blend in and change my appearance in the blink of an eye. Wigs and contacts work wonders. Don't even get me started on the foreign languages; spanish, mandarin, and french just to name a few that have been drilled into my brain. Hand-to-hand combat was something that Itachi made me practice every day; I improved greatly.

Basically, I was turned into a spy during the past fourteen months. But not only that, Itachi and I shared alot of time together. This was not good for me; I was trying to get rid of my feelings for him. Spending that much time with him was not helping one bit. Konan was the one person who I bonded with over time at Akatsuki. I confided in her my feelings for Itachi, as well as other things. She basically became my older sister; I could even call her my foster mom.

During these months, Itachi and I went on countless missions. I always stayed on the sidelines though; Itachi wouldn't let me do anything. Even though he told me I was helping out, I wanted to put my new skills to the test. I managed to keep my frustration bottled inside; I learned well. Although I'm pretty sure that Itachi saw right through me. If he did, he didn't say anything.

I went straight to my room right when we got back from our current mission; we had just spent a week in Arizona, in the middle of August. Our task was to retrieve an ancient artifact that had been found by some archeologists. The details were vague, but it was some kind of pot with a dangerous mold inside of it.

I was still covered in sweat and dust from the miles of hiking Itachi and I had to go through. Without even greeting anyone, I went straight into my room and into the shower. The water felt absolutely heavenly.

"Huhmmmm," I hummed to myself; I closed my eyes and let the water wash over me.

I thought about what happened during the mission, which was nothing. Itachi did most of the "heavy lifting."

'You really need to set your foot down,' Abaddon showed up and spoke to me internally.

'And you said you would help me,' I rolled my eyes.

'You've been so busy learning illegal activities, I didn't want to bother you,' Abaddon snickered.

To be honest, he was right. He hadn't been bothering me lately, so I decided to look up the name he had given me, and what I found out was pretty disturbing to say the least.

Abaddon was known as 'The Destroyer,' prophecied to come back and destroy mankind with his army of demons. This army would attack mankind but not the green of the earth and torture man until mankind repented for their sins. But after talking with Abaddon, I doubt he would let anyone go, even after repentance.

'So you looked me up,' Abaddon replied smugly to my thoughts.

'What of it?' I replied to him.

'So you know who I am now?' he asked.

"Yup, and I'm convinced I have a mental illness and I should start Haloperidol," I replied sullenly to myself as I turned off my shower.

"Zana, Pein wants to talk to us," Itachi barged into my room just as I had pulled away the shower curtain.

With lightning reflexes I pulled the shower curtain over myself.

"Oh my god, Itach, knock!" I shrieked. "How many times have I told you already?!"

Itachi just stood there staring with wide eyes.

"Helloooooo, earth to Itachi," I stuck my arm out and waved it around.

He snapped back to his senses.

"Sorry," he muttered and dashed out, his face red; I really hope he didn't see anything.

I pulled a towel over myself and stepped out.

'He loves you,' Abaddon responded suddenly.

'And you can tell from sitting inside of my head,' I rolled my eyes and dried myself off.

'You still don't believe that I'm a separate entity do you?' he sighed inside my head.

'Nope,' I said shortly.

'How dare you doubt me!' he nearly yelled.

'Jeez, and you wonder why I don't listen,' I shut his voice out.

I threw on some pajamas and went down to Pein's office.

"You wanted to see me?" I said, barging into his office.

The first time I had barged into Pein's office, he just gave me a stern look. I was told by the others that I had gotten off easy. I made it a habit to barge into his office only; his office chair was one of the comfiest I had ever felt.

Pein just sighed, "Yes I needed to speak with you, and Itachi as well. Where is he?"

"I don't know, probably still trying to get over the fact he may have seen me naked," I shrugged my shoulders and plopped down into the empty office chair that Pein had set up for himself.

"HE WHAT?!" Pein yelled. "Get your ass down here now Uchiha!"

"I was on my way, no need to yell," Itachi's icy voice came through the door.

"You barged in on Zana while she was in the shower?" Pein said in a low voice.

"I didn't see anything if that's what you're insinuating," Itachi replied in a deadly voice. "And since when did you care so much?"

"Guys," I called out. "Pein, you had a mission for us?"

"Yes; I know you guys just got back but this is a matter of urgency," Pein ushered me out of his chair.

I sighed and got up. Pein sat down and swiveled his computer around to face us.

"This is Balavi, Ahmad," Pein began. "He is a known member of a very discrete terrorist group that is located in the mountains of Kazakastan. They are going to conduct a trade for an electromagnetic bomb, that was stolen from the English goverment last week. You two have to go in, retrieve the bomb, and get out. Bring it back here and we'll destroy it; after the appropriate research of course."

"Won't this bomb be a little...big?" I asked uncertainly.

"Not really. It's the size of a normal briefcase," Pein explained. "The only issue you should have is the US government getting in the way."

"The government?!" I managed to squeak out.

"There will be three agents from the NSA trying to get the bomb as well," the screen on his laptop shifted to three pictures; one blond female, one brunette female, and one ruggedly handsome male. "Watch out for these three. They're some of the best agents the NSA has to offer. Don't get cocky."

"Where are we going?" Itachi asked shortly.

"Los Angeles," Pein replied. "He's having a huge party in two days where the trade is going to take place. Leave tomorrow morning and bring it back. Don't take too long and cover your tracks. You know the drill."

Itachi and I nodded in unison, turned and left his office in sync. I went straight back to my room and collapsed onto my bed. Even though I didn't do much on the missions, it was still tiring; that and we had to go on one tomorrow. I figured I would get some rest, but Itachi had other ideas.

"Come on, we have to read up on them," Itachi said, barging into the room with a bunch of files in his arms. "I have a map of his house and the schematics to the safe."

"Itachi, we need sleep," I groans from under the covers. "Without sleep, the human body can't function; mutation present or not."

"Fine, but be up tomorrow morning; we're leaving by nine," Itachi retorted and gathered up the files in his arms.

He promptly left my room and shut the door behind him. I rolled back into bed, but sleep didn't come. Instead, my mind was plagued by thoughts of the past. I know dwelling on the past was a waste of time, but that's where most of my happy memories were. Don't get me wrong, everyone at Akatsuki has been super nice to me, but I had left my family behind. Konan helped me a lot to get over that loss. She sort of stepped in and took over in their place. She became my older sister and mom all in one.

I sat up in bed and groaned to myself.

'What? Feel bad for shutting out your lover?' Abaddon snickered.

'Oh shut it you twit,' I growled and got out of bed.

Itachi's room was still right across from mine, so I knocked before I entered.

"Enter," his icy voice came through the door.

I held my head high and entered. "Let's talk. What are we going to do?"

Itachi smiled enigmatically and ushered me over. I sat next to him in his bed and he showed me the blueprints of Balavi's house. The bomb would be kept in a safe until it was time to make the trade. Once it was out of the safe, Itachi woulld use his skills to get it and get out. By then I would have the car waiting.

"Keep the man distracted," Itachi said. "He's the most trouble. If he gets in, then we might not be able to complete the mission."

"Well, what am I supposed to do?" I yawned.

"You have a body; use it," Itachi gave me a hard look.

"Yea yea kay," I murmured sleepily and lay down.

God this bed was so comfrotable. The words Itachi had just told me went over my head. I couldn't concentrate anymore. Sleep welcomed me with open arms.

I was jolted awake an unknown amount of time later and I sat up violently. I looked around and found my self in an unfamiliar room, yet oddly familiar at the same time. I turned to my right and saw Itachi sleeping there peacefully. I pulled the blanket off slowly and made every effort to get out of bed slowly to prevent Itachi from waking up, but it didnt work.

His had shot out and grabbed my wrist, "Please don't go."

His voice came out strained and I couldnt resist. I climbed back into bed and without warning, he pulled me close and was asleep again in seconds. I could feel his breath come out evenly against my forhead; I got comfortable and closed my eyes. I fell asleep moments later, next to the one man I had fallen for.

"You packed the necessary supplies?" Itachi murmured as he loaded up the car.

"Yup; laptop, weapons, clothes," I listed off. "What else do I need?"

"Don't forget your sexy self," I heard Hidan's playful voice from behind us.

"You are absolutely right Hidan, " I smiled.

Itach slammed the trunk shut and went to the front of the car. I heard the door slam as he got inside.

"I think someone is jealous," Hidan said evilly.

"Nah, he just doesn't like you," I pulled out my car keys. "See you in a few."

"You keep telling yourself that sweetie," Hidan called out as I climbed into my car.

"Why do you lead him on?" Itachi spoke as we started our drive to LA.

"He flirts with me and girls like that attention," I shrugged my shouldrers. "It's not like I'm sleeping with him."

A heavy silence fell between us, and my thoughts wandered back to last night.

_My eyes opened to find Itachi's sleeping face dangerously close to mine. The sun light was pouring in through the one window. I sat up quickly and Itachi woke up from my sudden moves._

_"Were you here all night?" Itachi murmured softly, sitting up next to me._

_"Uhm, yea..." I said quietly, putting my arms around myself._

_"I'm sorry for keeping you here all night," Itachi replied softly._

_"Don't worry about it," I made a move to get off the bed. "Gotta get ready for the mission."_

_Itachi's hand shot out and grabbed my arm before I could get up, "Thank you."_

_"For what?" I asked quizzically._

_"For the first time in as long as I can remeber, I didn't have any nightmares," Itachi smiled his beautiful smile._

_"That's-it's- you're welcome," I stammered._

_I pulled out of his grip and rushed to my room, trying to make a list in my head of what I needed to take along to take my mind off of what just happened._

When my mind came back to reality, I turned on the radio. I kept the volume low, so as to not disturb Itachi; he was still studying the files. We sat in silence for a few hours, and then I spoke.

"Itachi, where exactly are we headed?" I asked quietly.

"We're going to LA first; our hotel is on Sunset Blvd near the beach," Itachi said quietly. "It's also near the target in Malibu."

"Alright, so what's the plan Mr. I-Know-Everything?" I said jokingly.

"We'll pick up a rental and keep your car out of sight for a few days," Itachi explained. "We'll go to the party tomorrow; I'll handle getting the suitcase, you handle the main agent."

"Handle how?" I asked puzzled.

"Do I really need to explain myself again?" Itachi sighed.

I got the implication; so I pulled over at the next exit.

"What are you doing? We have a few more hours left," Itachi snapped.

"You stay here; I'm starving," I stepped out of the car. "Want anything?"

"No."

I shrugged my shouhlders and walked into the first place I saw: Panda Express. It was one of my favorite places. I ordered two plates of food, knowing full well that Itachi was starving as well as me; we hadn't eaten anything since morning.

"Lunchtime!" I said cheerily the moment I sat down inside the car.

"I'm not hungry," Itachi said quietly, just as his stomach growled loudly.

Itachi and I stared at his stomach and I burst out laughing, "Come on Itachi, you know full well that the body can't survive without nutrition."

"I'm studying the information we have to find every possible weakness that we can exploit," Itachi said stoutly. "The male agent for example, he likes brunettes who have nice legs and a great...upper body."

Itachi stared at me pointedly.

"Fine, you read and analyze, I'll eat and then feed you; agreed?" I sighed.

Itachi ignored me and went back to studying the files. I ate my food quickly, and pulled out the bowl designated for Itachi. I took a spoon and scooped up some chicken and rice.

"Itachi come on," I said coaxingly. "You know you want some."

Itachi glanced at me, then at the food. He took a bite and I continued to feed him until he had eaten all of it. I swear, men can be so stubborn sometimes.

We were on the road moments later heading to the hotel Itachi specified. I had to admit, the scenery on highway one was beautiful; too bad we couldn't stay and enjoy it though.

"Hello, checking in for Mr. and Mrs. Jones," Itachi said smoothly to the concierge.

It wasn't a hotel, it was a straight up resort.

"Ah yes, the honeymoon suite," the man responded with a smile "Enjoy. Let us know if you need anything."

He handed us the keys to the room and Itachi picked up the bags.

"Seriously?! A honeymoon suite?!" I hissed when were alone on the elevator.

"We have to keep a viable cover," Itachi said quietly. "A man and woman, no one would question we were on our honeymoon. So let's act."

I shut my mouth and looked straight ahead. I know we won't be doing anyting but the fact of sharing a bed with Itachi, again, was making my heart beat loud and fast. The elevator doors opened and Itachi put his arm around me, leading me to the room.

"So the plan is as follows; Keep the man distracted, and I'll take care of the rest," Itachi replied as he set the bags down at the foot of the bed. "Do whatever it takes."

"Does that include sleeping with him?" I said quietly.

"You won't have to go that far on this one, but if you have to," Itachi shrugged, and took off his shirt.

"H-Hey! We have a bathroom you know!" I turned bright red; momentarily distracted.

Itachi smirked and disappeared into the bathroom. I pulled out my pajamas and my clothes for tomorrow: black stilletto heels, a black mini halter dress, and the appropriate makeup. I quickly changed into my pajamas before Itachi could come back out. I grabbed my small handgun from my bag and stuck it under my pillow, just in case anything were to happen.

I heard Itachi come out of the bathroom; he shuffled through his bag and then climbed into bed.

"I know you're still awake," Itachi murmured quietly.

"Yea, so?" I mumbled, my back still to him.

I could feel Itachi come close to me, his lips at my ear, "If you want, we can practice for tomorrow."

I turned to face him; his eyes held a fire that I had seen only once in my life and that was during seven minutes in heaven two years ago. He brought his hand up and caressed my cheek softly. The moonlight lit up his face, making him look like an angel; my guardian angel.

"I think I can handle tomorrow," I whispered, more to myself than anyone else.

"Are you sure?" he whispered silkily bringing his face closer to mine.

Our breaths mingled together and Itachi's hand went slowly from my cheek, down my neck and arm and his hand intertwined with mine. His other hand came up and touched my lips softly.

"Well Mrs. Jones, we are on our honeymoon," Itachi said with a sensual smile.

"Well, when you put it that way Mr. Jones," I said softly.

'Wait, hang on, he's just being a horny little bugger!' Abaddon screeched in my head and I felt a jolt internally.

"Ahg!" I felt hot, like I was on fire.

I let go of his hand and shrunk away from Itachi. I squeezed my eyes shut and did all I could to not let out the screams building up. Tears escaped from the corners of my eyes and I groaned as the heat slowly receded back into my core. My breath came out in ragged gasps as I tried to get oxygen back into my bloodstream.

"Zana! Are you alright?" Itachi's concerned voice broke through my other senses

"I-I'm fine," I said with a shaky smile. "Just a muscle cramp."

"Get enough rest before tomorrow," Itachi said quietly. "I can do this on my own if needed; I don't want you getting hurt unnecessarily."

"I'll be fine Itachi," I snapped. "For once, let me do something other than drive on a mission."

"You always help me," Itachi said quietly. "You're okay with seducing a man you do't even know?"

"I knew what I signed up for," I muttered. "Good night Itachi."

I turned around to faced the window, away from Itachi. Abaddon was right; I'm sure he was just looking for some fun, but that pain was new. That has never happened before. Maybe it was related to the voice in my head.

"Good night Zana," I heard Itachi's quiet voice, laced with sadness.

My heart couldn't handle it; I turned back around to face Itachi but he had turned his back on me. I reached out, took his hand into mine and squeezed it gently. After that, my eyes drooped shut and the darkness welcomed me back into its humble abode.

**A/N: Finally! Chapter 11! You're welcome. Thank you for being so patient with me. Please review! I adore reading your thoughts on the story. Lately I've been working 60+ hours per week, so I haven't had much time to type this up. Keep reading my lovelies and thank you so much for your support!**


	12. Chapter 12

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Itachi Uchiha, Akatsuki, or anything else to do with Naruto. Having said that, this plot, this story and all other characters not associated with Naruto are my own. Thank you and enjoy.**

_My night was plagued with dreams of darkness and fire. I was standing on the edge of a cliff which dropped down into a river of fire and lava. The heat blasted my face and I could hear the tortured screams of souls that were trapped in this godforsaken world. I felt drops of liquid on my face; I shifted my gaze up and saw a dragon of massive proportions. This dragon had humans clamped in its jaws and their blood dripped slowly down onto the ground around me and onto me. I opened my mouth to scream, but nothing came out. I was trapped._

My eyes open suddenly to bright sunlight pouring in through the curtains. I turned to greet Itachi but his side of the bed was woefully empty.

"Good morning," I heard Itachi's voice. "Rise and shine."

I felt the blanket being pulled off of me. I groaned and sat up, rubbing my eyes, "What time is it?"

"Almost ten," he murmured, sitting back down on his side of the bed. He began perusing the files once again.

I stood up and stretched; little did I know, Itachi was watching me out of the corner of his eye. The bathroom was a welcome escape from the tension in the main room. I splashed my face, brushed my teeth and took a long shower. I was nervous; this would be the first mission where I would actually be doing something important. I moved my gaze upward to find my familiar face looking back at me. I went back to my bag outside and rummaged through it.

"We have to finalize the plan," Itachi stated flatly.

"What time do we have to head out?" I asked, pulling out my toiletries' bag and gathering up my clothes.

"Three," he replied, looking up at me. "Is that cinnamon?"

"It's just the body wash I used," I muttered, rolling my eyes.

"It smells delicious," he said with a small smile, then stood up. "If you're done with the bathroom, I'm going to shower and get dressed. The earlier we get this done, the earlier we can get back."

He brushed past me and disappeared into the bathroom. The moment the door clicked shut, my pajamas came off. I pulled on the dress I had picked out for this trip; a black mini halter dress. It stopped right above the mid-thigh and showed enough cleavage to turn heads. Just to be safe, I wore some lacy undergarments in case it did go that far. I went to my makeup next; light foundation, black eyeliner, mascara, and topped off with dark red lipstick. I didn't recognize the reflection looking back at me from the mirror. I put on the black stiletto heels and I was ready; it took a lot less time than I had expected. I ruffled up my hair a little to give it that teased look but with my long, thick hair, it didn't work as well as I expected it to.

I pulled out a pair of scissors and started chopping away, creating uneven choppy layers in my hair. My length stayed the same; down to my waist, but there was more bounce and volume my hair now. The uneven, choppy layers gave my hair a more textured look.

"Wow," I heard from behind me.

I whipped around to find Itachi standing there in dark slacks and shirtless. I kept my eyes on his.

"Does it look bad?" I asked quietly.

He leaned in the doorway and put on his sexiest smile, his eyes lit with the same passion and fire from last night.

"Not at all," he smirked. "I think he'll be very pleased with what he sees."

"Oh really? And you aren't?" I smirked and walked toward him slowly, extending my legs the right amount.

I went right up him, inches away from his face. I kept control of my breathing and heart rate, something that had taken months to perfect. I could feel Itachi's arm snake around my waist and pull me closer to him. His other hand caressed my cheek softly; eyes boring into mine. I placed one hand on his hip, the other on his cheek and I pressed closer to him.

"Well?" I murmured seductively, my breath softly caressing his lips.

"Beautiful," he said, moving his lips down to my neck, leaving butterfly kisses against my skin. "Like a goddess."

I pressed even closer to him; the animalistic desire to have him was dangerously close to taking over my being. I pulled away slightly and smiled.

"So, when are we heading out?" I smiled mischievously.

"As soon as I'm done here," Itachi said softly, his hands travelling down to my hips.

He pushed me back against the wall, his lips dangerously close to mine. My mind screamed at me to close the distance; to do what I had been dreaming about since I had laid eyes on him, but the ringing of his cell phone stopped me.

Itachi audibly sighed and released his grip on me.

"Yes?" his voice came out sharply.

I heard Pein's voice on the other end, although I did not catch his words.

"We'll be back tonight," Itachi said quietly and hung up.

His gaze came back toward me, but he looked away a split second later.

"Distract the man and I'll get what we came for," Itachi stated in his usual cold voice.

I nodded once and took one last look in the mirror, fixing up anything I deemed imperfect.

"Let's go," he said tersely, offering me his arm.

He was in all black; black slacks, black dress shirt, black tie, black shoes. His hair hung loosely on his shoulders and fell into his eyes. Even I had to admit, we looked hot.

"I'm driving," I smiled big and sat in the rental.

We had chosen a black two door Maserati Grandturismo with a dark leather interior. I revved the engine and shot out of the parking lot. My excitement could not be contained.

"We're not too far from his house," Itachi said over the noise of the engine. "Take the next right and go all the way up the hill."

We arrived at a round, circular driveway with a valet waiting.

"The valet is the undercover agent," Itachi muttered quietly. "You know what to do from here."

I put on my sexiest smile as I stepped out of the car. I took a good look at him; dark green dress shirt with a white bowtie and matching white pants, dark brown hair and emotionless brown eyes, well built and very handsome. I guess it could have been worse.

"Take care of my baby for me," I smiled mischievously. "I'll be back to check on her later."

I threw a wink in his direction and his eyes grew wide. Itachi took my arm and I waved good bye to the valet AKA the undercover agent whose nametag read 'Casey.'

"So, I'll be back in an hour with a couple glasses of wine, you do your thing, and we go home," I said in a monotone voice but with a smile on my face.

"Alright but don't have too much fun," he smiled bitterly and left me standing alone in the middle of the party.

For the next twenty minutes, I socialized with a variety of people, learning about the different lives of people. Almost half an hour later, I grabbed two glasses of wine and made my way back to the valet station. Casey was nowhere to be seen. I walked around back and saw him wiping down a Rolls Royce, probably Balavi's.

"So why is it that the one who works the hardest, doesn't get to enjoy the rewards of the world?" I called out, walking toward him with a smile on my face.

Casey stopped and stared at me, "What do you mean?"

"I mean you're back here polishing what's-his-name's car, while he's enjoying martinis and margaritas surrounded by beautiful women," I shrugged my shoulders. "That's not fair."

"Well then miss, why are you not with him?" he questioned me quietly.

I held out a glass of wine toward him, "I wanted to thank you for taking care of my baby."

He looked at the glass then back at me.

"Come on, I won't tell if you won't" I smiled and took a sip of wine.

He took the glass from my hand tentatively and sniffed it.

"Really? It's Chardonnay if you're so curious," I sniffed, feigning mock hurt. "I guess I'll go back then."

"No wait," he grabbed my wrist.

Before I knew it, he pulled me close to him, his hand around my waist and the wine in his other hand.

"A toast, to hard work," he whispered into my ear. "And of course to exotic beauty."

"Amen to that," and we both drank simultaneously.

Before I knew it, he took the empty glass from my hand and placed both on top of the car. His hands went around my waist and he started kissing my neck. I bit my lower lip to hold back any noise. My insides were twisting in disgust; mentally I was cursing myself. But my physical body had craved so long for the touch of a man that it welcomed it with open arms. Before I knew it, Casey had pushed me up against the car and crashed his lips onto mine. I let my hands snake around him and molded my lips to his.

He was rough, forceful and his hands traveled up my dress, grabbed my thigh and lifted my leg up. I let him explore my mouth while my hand traveled to a very obvious bulge that had grown in between his legs. I grabbed it through his pants and I could hear his breath intake sharply.

"I'll take you right now," he breathed as he pulled away slightly; his wine tinged breath covered my face.

"The hell you will," I heard a dangerous, icy voice. "Move!"

Itachi was standing behind him, holding a gun with a silencer to Casey's head; his hands went up in surrender.

"So, it was all a trick huh?" he spat.

"Of course," I said coldly, hitting some pressure points on his torso, causing him to collapse completely to a heap on the ground.

Itachi stepped over him and handed me the keys to my car, "Let's go."

I heard some bullets fly over us as we climbed into the Maserati. I floored it and shot down the hill. We ditched the car on the road and hopped roof after roof it back to the hotel. In silence, we packed up our things, changed our clothes, tied back our hair and jumped into my car.

Our journey back to headquarters began in tense silence. There was no music, no sound to break the thickness that hung in the car. My hands gripped the steering wheel tightly and the speedometer jumped to 90.

"Don't rush; we're ahead of schedule and we don't want to get pulled over," Itachi said sharply.

I let go of the accelerator and nodded once, "So, you got it right?"

"Of course," Itachi muttered, and looked out the window.

I opened my mouth to speak, but Itachi turned away from me. I sighed inaudibly and focused my attention on the road. For the rest of the trip, Itachi didn't say a single word to me; he ignored me completely.

'Finally working huh?' Abaddon sneered.

'Yup; I helped out for once,' I shot at him.

'But then why aren't you happy hm?' I heard the smirk in his voice. 'You wanted it to be him.'

'No shit Sherlock,' I snapped. 'You think I had fun letting some...guy touch me all over?!'

'You'd let Itachi,' Abaddon murmured quietly.

'None of your business,' I snapped once again and even Abaddon disappeared into my head.

The silence in my head and in the car was deafening. I just gripped the wheel tightly and locked my gaze forward. I couldn't wait to get this man's scent off of me.

**A/N: I give you chapter 12! I don't think I got into the gene mutation bit though. Which I probably should. I'll cover it in the next chapter I promise. It's been a question that's been asked. Thank you so much for the responses! Please review! Let me thank you all once again for staying with me this long! I hope I don't disappoint! Keep reading my lovelies and don't ever stop. **


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